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SCMP Reporter

Former housing chief's post with developer faces renewed scrutiny
The chief executive has told the civil service minister to re-examine her decision to let a former housing chief take a job with a big developer,  amid mounting public criticism that it risks creating a  conflict of interest.
Donald Tsang Yam-kuen's order came after it emerged that Leung Chin-man's role in the sale of the  Hunghom Peninsula housing estate to a consortium including a subsidiary of New World Development - for whose mainland property arm he now works -  was not considered before Miss Yue approved his job.
Mr Leung, 62, began work last week as executive director and vice-chairman of  New World China Land.
New World was at the centre of a row in 2004 when a consortium involving its subsidiary NWS Holdings and Sun Hung Kai Properties bought Hunghom Peninsula - a prime waterfront estate built for sale but never occupied -  from the government for barely half the asking price, then announced plans, later abandoned, to knock it down.
Denise Yue Chung-yee, secretary for the civil service, and the Transport and Housing Bureau both issued apologies  yesterday.
'The whole matter has caused much public concern, comments and queries,' Miss Yue said. 'On this, I would like to express my sincere apology.'
Asked if she would resign, she said: 'I am much committed and do very much love my present job. I hope I can  continue to do the job.'
She would not say whether  she would rescind the approval for Mr Leung to take up the New World post and would not comment on whether rescinding it might trigger a legal challenge from Mr Leung.
Legal experts said the government could face a lawsuit if Mr Leung had to quit his job.
'What Mr Leung wants to do with his job, it is up to him to decide,' she said.
New World Development refused to comment.
Major political parties  urged a review of the process for approving senior officials'  post-retirement work,  but stopped short of calling for Miss Yue's resignation. A senior  source said the government had no intention of asking Miss Yue to quit.
An executive councillor, who declined to be named, said the primary responsibility rested with the Transport and Housing Bureau.
The bureau said  it had ruled that Mr Leung's case would not involve conflict of interest since  his job would mainly involve business on the mainland.
'We had not considered Mr Leung's involvement in the Hunghom Peninsula development when we processed his application,' it  said.
The Chief Executive's Office said the Civil Service Bureau had not considered Mr Leung's involvement in the sale either,   nor the fact  a subsidiary of New World Development was one of the companies involved. Nor had it considered how the public might react.
Mr Leung, 62, who formally retired from the government only in January last year  had headed the buildings and housing departments.
He was also caught up in controversy over a bonus land grant to Henderson Land for its Grand Promenade development in Sai Wan Ho, which allowed it to earn an extra HK$3.2 billion and cost the government HK$115 million.
The Audit Commission criticised Mr Leung's role in the deal and a Legislative Council committee censured him, but an independent inquiry drew  opposite conclusions.



Tsang orders rethink on ex-official's job