Just Saying | Greedy landlords must be forced to cut rent in coronavirus crisis
- Yonden Lhatoo calls for government intervention to deal with unscrupulous property owners who continue to profit while tenants struggle to meet monthly payments as the health emergency takes its toll on jobs and income
“You guys are fat. We have fed you for years. I hope you don’t only talk about the spirit of the contracts. I hope you can talk about the conscience of corporate social responsibility.”
I’m not sure if Cheung was channelling William Shakespeare, but the analogy that springs to mind is that of the “caterpillars of the commonwealth” whom we may do well to “lop away, that bearing boughs may live”, bloated creatures incessantly munching through already wilting gardens watered by the blood, sweat and tears of this city.
In a bid to counter the coronavirus carnage, the government is pouring tens of billions of dollars into relief packages for the worst-hit sectors. But taxpayers’ money alone won’t be enough to stop businesses – already bleeding from a year of social unrest – from collapsing under the relentless onslaught of a disease that has changed consumer behaviour in a climate of anxiety and uncertainty.