Housing agencies scolded for failure to curb ‘dual tenancy’ in Hong Kong public flats
Ombudsman says failure to prevent public rental tenants from keeping more than one flat prejudices chances of those on waiting list
The two major suppliers of subsidised flats for sale and rent have drawn the Ombudsman's ire for failing to act decisively against tenants who occupy more than one rented home, leaving hundreds of thousands of needy people in an agonising wait for public housing.
Between them, the government's Housing Department and the Housing Society, an NGO, shoulder the responsibility of providing affordable rental housing for low-income earners.
But the agencies had been too tolerant of residents who abused public resources by keeping two flats or more, the watchdog that oversees public administration said yesterday.
Although the department issued monthly statements to the society informing it of tenants who had double housing benefits, the system was clearly ineffective, Ombudsman Connie Lau Yin-hing said.
"Their coordination has failed in dealing with problematic cases and their approach is too lenient," Lau said.
"They have been tolerating for six to eight years people who should have vacated the flats, and [the staff] have forgotten those who are waiting painfully for public housing."
