Hong Kong aviation director Norman Lo slammed over unauthorised headquarters work
Public Accounts Committee says in report it 'deplores' actions of Normal Lo for failing to follow procedures in building headquarters
The head of the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) has been condemned in the strongest terms possible by a Legislative Council committee over his failure to follow proper procedures while building the department's new headquarters.
In a report released yesterday, Legco's Public Accounts Committee, tasked to study Audit Commission reports, said it "deplores" the actions of Norman Lo Shung-man, director general of civil aviation.
It said that "as the head of the user department of the new CAD headquarters project, [Lo] had wilfully neglected his responsibility and duties to provide complete, accurate and not misleading information to Legco for funding approval".
The committee also said that Lo had "deliberately overridden" the Property Vetting Committee and the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau while building the new headquarters.
Last November, the audit watchdog said that the CAD had received approval for the new headquarters with a net operational floor area of 22,775 square metres, of which 3,240 square metres was reserved for future expansion.
But the watchdog found the CAD had built an additional 1,500-square-metre area for future use that was not approved by the relevant government offices.
It also revealed that the CAD had spent HK$67.45 million on security and electronic systems without government approval and had failed to seek permission before building shower facilities in Lo's office.