LettersNo-can-do Hong Kong needs a revival rather than an ad campaign

As Ronan Keating once sang, “You say it best when you say nothing at all”.

Having been in marketing and advertising for most of my life, I know timing is everything and less is always more.

What the Hong Kong government and its various departments have always produced are their ideas of what they believe “advertising” should be. There’s very little, if any, strategic thinking. Something is produced only because there’s a marketing and advertising budget.

Cornball lines like “We will no doubt bounce back. We always do” are as horrendously out of step with reality as those who talk about Hong Kong’s can-do spirit. That got up and left years ago and was replaced with “no can do”.

Instead of cutesy jingles, tired corporate speak trying to masquerade as snappy slogans and more vapid celebrity endorsements, if Hong Kong is to make any sort of comeback, it first needs to understand that there’s been a changing of the guard.

Maybe those making decisions have been past their use-by date for years? Right now, as a product, Hong Kong is on life support. It barely has a pulse.

Perhaps more than anything else, this once vibrant city first needs to convince those of us who are here that there is still something of significance worth staying for.

There’s no need to waste money on public relations companies. These are usually hired because they are compliant.

And what do we get? More servings of corporate dim sum that don’t mean anything to anyone except for those who approve this work.

Hans Ebert, Wan Chai

Why can’t we have HK$5,000 vaccination vouchers?

So I’d like to ask the government: why is it that you haven’t done so? Is there some legal impediment? Didn’t you think of it? Just couldn’t be bothered?

What’s the truth? Do tell.

Not deploying such an obvious and powerful incentive is puzzling indeed.

Peter Forsythe, Discovery Bay

E-vouchers: Hong Kong mustn’t leave seniors behind