Tai Po fire inquiry must discharge its duty without fear or favour

The inquiry into the deadly Tai Po fire in November has started a new chapter. After five months of public hearings over Hong Kong’s worst high-rise blaze, the independent committee is moving into the important stage of identifying responsibility and charting meaningful reform to prevent a recurrence. The stakes are high and the panel must rise to the challenge.

Residents at the hearing were understandably dismayed when the government appeared to be passing the buck by arguing that while systemic issues in its regulatory and supervisory framework led to failures in detecting wrongdoing by construction and fire service firms, the government’s role in the tragedy was secondary to that of the contractors behind the estate’s renovations.

The judge-led committee, to its credit, has been doing a good job. Having gone through 1 million files and testimonies from 80 witnesses, including government officials, survivors, construction workers, and fire safety and legal experts, the legal team released a 627-page closing submission last week, along with preliminary suggestions. These include legislation and law enforcement changes for four departments implicated in the fire – the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit, the Fire Services Department, the Buildings Department and the Labour Department.

But a greater test lies ahead. The committee must confront uncomfortable evidence and discharge its duties without fear or favour. The final report has reportedly been delayed by another month to late October, as more time is needed to review the documents.

It is good that sweeping reforms are being introduced in tandem. In addition to tightening fire safety and property management laws, plans to criminalise bid-rigging are also under way in the wake of the alleged collusion involving the estate’s HK$336 million (US$43 million) renovation project, whose use of substandard materials aggravated the fire.