Q Should the government subsidise public transport for the poor? We have allowances for the elderly, a CSSA scheme for the underprivileged and now people are proposing a public transport subsidy for the unemployed. With the well-developed welfare system in Hong Kong, we spend much on the well-being of society. This makes Hong Kong a popular city. Basically, we don't mind helping, but we would like to ensure our toil is spent for worthwhile purposes. People are always groaning about unemployment. But I wonder if the jobless ones do not have the ability to find a job and feed the family or whether it is just idleness that induces them to sit at home and wait to be fed. The ones who enjoy a benefit payment should be those who have contributed to society but have failed to find a way to support their family. We should aid them instead. The proposed subsidy should be given only to the breadwinner and for travel only during working hours. Crystal Chan, Pok Fu Lam Q Are we overreacting to food contamination? I'm shocked that Chinese University professor Kwan Hoi-shan, who also happens to be the chairman of the expert committee for food safety, has made the questionable suggestion that we are overreacting to food contamination. Malachite green, Sudan dye and the like are substances banned by law. Unless we are prepared to relax the legal criteria, there should be zero tolerance regarding these harmful substances. Views held by Professor Kwan can only cast doubt on the ability of the Centre for Food Safety in upholding standards in Hong Kong in accordance with the law. Jennifer Wong, Kowloon Tong I would really like to know the way experts define overreaction. Shouldn't we be frightened when told of the presence of malachite green and Sudan Red in both fish and eggs? Must we stay calm, as the professionals do whenever meeting any obstacles? It is just unreasonable. Regarding the belief by a professor, John Ho Wing-shing that we do not have to panic owing to the low levels of malachite green and Sudan Red in mainland food supplies, but rather avoid them, I doubt his idea. If I follow this logic, no one should be scared of being beaten and fighting, seeing that they will not cause serious consequences, like dying. Whenever these don't-need-to-panic problems come up, all of us should be bold enough to face them. No matter how we react, precautionary measures are most advised. Janet Wong, Tsuen Wan Q What should be done to improve food safety? The most effective way is high transparency and a labelling system. Whenever poisonous food is found, the name of the shops involved, the food supplier and the source of food should be disclosed to the public immediately and clearly so as to alert the public to the safety risk. The reputation of the shops and the food supplier will be seriously tarnished, which in turn gives an indirect warning to other unscrupulous shops and food suppliers. In contrast, those shops consistently selling safe food should be granted a label in recognition of their efforts and be promoted to the public through the media. People can fully exercise their power, choosing shops that make the utmost effort to ensure food safety, with complete market information. Gradually, those inconsiderate food suppliers and shops will be wiped out through the power of the market. Davies Parker, Tung Chung Q What do you think of the quality of the police in Hong Kong? I have a lot of praise for the police. I also have noticed considerable improvement in 'customer-friendliness' in various departments. I would also like to praise the performance of the police's Lantau division. I live on Lantau and whether they are called for helping to chase away a cobra or bamboo snake (they won't kill them), a case of graffiti, organising a public rally or a neighbour who is creating a nuisance, they are very polite, efficient and respond quickly. On or off duty, they are friendly with residents, showing interest in their work. I find the Lantau police officers more of a neighbourhood police as we have experienced in continental Europe. Esta Overmars, Lantau In my travels around the world, I have yet to find a police force that matches the high professional standards to be found in Hong Kong. While there will inevitably be sub-standard performers in any large government-run organisation, I have always found the police in Hong Kong to be very efficient. The fact that Hong Kong is one of the safest cities in the world is, I believe, testament to their good work. Wai Tak-shing Q How can animal welfare be improved? With reference to the comments on KFC by Paul Harrison in Talkback, (November 28), we, as the franchisee of KFC in Hong Kong, feel obliged to state the facts and to clear up any misconceptions about our procurement practice. KFC does not own any poultry farms and is not involved in raising or transporting of chickens. We source the same high-quality chickens as other leading supermarket chains and food retailers from suppliers which meet with Good Manufacturing Practice, HACCP food safety control system and ISO 9001 quality management system accreditation. KFC is seriously concerned about the welfare of animals and poultry. We are committed to poultry welfare. All our suppliers are regularly audited by independent welfare specialists to ensure that they all meet or exceed both UK and EU animal welfare legislation. KFC will continue to monitor our suppliers to ensure full compliance with the requirements. Emily Wong, senior marketing manager, Birdland (Hong Kong) Limited Q Will interim measures curb junk phone calls? I am getting angry with these random calls to my house from fax numbers and automated machines, faxing or trying to sell me something. Sometimes these calls are made personally and they ask me if I speak Cantonese and when I say no, they rudely hang up. It has now come to a stage where I get these nuisance calls and fax lines ringing in the middle of the night. When are we going to come up with a law governing these nuisance calls. What is the ombudsman in charge of telecommunications doing about this invasion of privacy? Until this administratively slow regulatory authority and government do anything about it, let's start our own 'name and shame' list of numbers that are a nuisance. Come on everybody, lets kick-start the 'Do Not Call' list. Amit Singh, Sheung Wan Q Should the government consider the developer's proposal for Wan Chai Market? I recently tried to elicit a response from the case officer at the Antiquities and Monuments Office responsible for the fate of the Wan Chai Market as to why she did not deem the building to be worth saving, but have yet to receive a response. Given the power vested in the board, the lack of transparency and accountability is disturbing. What qualifications do the members have and who elected them? The declared-monuments list for Hong Kong Island is only 26 buildings, rock carvings etc - a pathetic total. There must be hundreds of other buildings that should be added - Pedder Building, the temple on Hollywood Road, old shop houses. I also note that there are no residential buildings on the list. Could the board chairman please comment? Keith Hemshall Q Have you had a bad experience with a taxi driver? It is interesting to read how opinions about taxi drivers in Hong Kong differ. Apparently we have nice taxi drivers and not-so-nice taxi drivers, as in any profession. If you assume that the taxi driver will not be nice, he will not be nice. It is so easy to find something wrong in somebody. If I lose a mobile phone in a taxi, I call my mobile phone immediately and nobody picks up (by this time the taxi driver must have realised that there was an extra phone in his car). I call again and the phone is switched off, so I know I have lost my phone. Is this the fault of the taxi driver? Actually no. It was me who lost the phone and I was not lucky to have an honest taxi driver that day. That is all. Let us accept the days that we have good luck and the days we are not so lucky and stop blaming others for all the wrongs happening to us. Vera van Ek, Lobster Bay My gripe is that 50 per cent of taxi drivers don't seem to know how to drive a taxi smoothly. They seem to continually press and release the accelerator, so that you get this sort of lurching feeling and I end up feeling sick. In view of this, as long as I have sufficient time for my journey, I always try to take a bus. There are one or two bus drivers who employ the press-and-release technique, but they are probably former taxi drivers. R. Langston, Pok Fu Lam
