The Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) today (July 26) gazetted a notice to invite tenders for the contract for site formation and infrastructure works for public housing development at A Kung Ngam Village, Eastern (Contract No. SD/2024/01). The closing time for the tender is noon on September 6.
      
     The works mainly include:

• formation of a work site of about 2.4 hectares and construction of associated retaining walls and slopes;
• natural terrain hazard mitigation works including installation of soil nails, rock slope inspection and stabilisation;
• general site clearance, including but not limited to, demolition of existing buildings and structures, clearance of vegetation, assisting utilities undertakings companies on removal of their properties/facilities;
• road improvement works at A Kung Ngam Village Road and A Kung Ngam Village Lane; and
• ancillary works including drainage, sewerage, water supply and landscaping.

     The works are scheduled to commence in the first quarter of 2025 and will take about 52 months to complete.
      
     The CEDD has commissioned WSP (Asia) Limited to design and supervise the works. Interested contractors can download the tender forms and other particulars from the e-Tendering System (e-TS). Tenderers must submit tenders in electronic format via the e-TS.
      
     Details of the tender notice are available at the CEDD website (www.cedd.gov.hk/eng/tender-notices/contracts/tender-notices/index.html). For enquiries, please call WSP (Asia) Limited at 2217 2335 during office hours.

     Two co-owners were convicted and each sentenced to six weeks' imprisonment suspended for 18 months, and fined over $17,000 in total at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts on July 10 for failing to comply with a removal order issued under the Buildings Ordinance (BO) (Cap. 123).
 
     The case involved an unauthorised structure with an area of about 40 square metres on the roof of a composite building at Ki Lung Street, Mong Kok. The roof is co-owned by two owners. As the unauthorised building works (UBWs) were carried out without prior approval and consent from the Buildings Department (BD), a removal order was served on the two owners under section 24(1) of the BO.
 
     Failing to comply with the removal order, the two owners were prosecuted by the BD in 2018 and were fined over $17,000 in total upon conviction by the court. As they persisted in not complying with the removal order, the BD instigated prosecution again. During the hearing at the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts on July 10, they confirmed that the unauthorised structure had been rented out. Furthermore, they showed no intention of complying with the order. They were eventually convicted and were each sentenced to six weeks' imprisonment suspended for 18 months, and fined a total of $17,560.
 
     A spokesman for the BD said today (July 26), "UBWs may lead to serious consequences. The owners concerned must comply with the removal order without delay. The BD will continue to take enforcement actions and consider instigating prosecution against the owners again at appropriate times if they persist in not complying with the order to ensure building safety."
 
     Failure to comply with a removal order without reasonable excuse is a serious offence under the BO. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $200,000 and one year's imprisonment, and a further fine of $20,000 for each day that the offence continues.

     The Government announced today (July 26) the reappointment of Mr Chiu Man-chung, Terence, as the Commissioner of the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation (ECIC) with effect from today until July 31, 2027.
 
     "Mr Chiu was first appointed as the Commissioner of the ECIC in July 2021. With his exemplary leadership, the ECIC has strived to provide more comprehensive protection to Hong Kong exporters with a view to fully supporting them in exploring overseas and Mainland markets. We are confident that in his upcoming term, Mr Chiu will continue to lead the ECIC in supporting Hong Kong exporters," a Government spokesman said.
 
     In the past three years, the ECIC introduced various support measures such as the "risk-sharing arrangement on domestic sales in the Mainland", and signed meeting minutes with the Guangdong and Shenzhen branches of the China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation to strengthen co-operation in providing export credit insurance services and to enhance its underwriting capacity on the Mainland.
 
     Established in 1966 under the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation Ordinance, the ECIC is committed to supporting Hong Kong's export trade. Through the provision of export credit insurance services, the ECIC protects Hong Kong exporters who trade on credit terms with overseas buyers against non-payment risks and helps them conduct export business in a prudent manner. The Government provides a guarantee of $80 billion for the ECIC's contingent liability.

     The Government announced today (July 26) that the Chief Executive (CE) has appointed Ms Eva Kwong Pui-han as a member of the Pensions Appeal Panel (PAP) and the Appeal Panel on Government's Voluntary Contributions under the Civil Service Provident Fund Scheme (APGVC) for a term of three years with effect from August 4, 2024.
 
     The Government also expressed gratitude to the outgoing member, Ms Connie Lam Tsui-wa, for her dedicated service and contribution to the two appeal panels.
 
     The PAP is a statutory body established under the Pension Benefits Ordinance (Cap. 99) responsible for advising the CE on petitions made by civil servants against decisions to cancel, suspend, reduce or refuse to grant pension benefits. The APGVC is an administrative panel set up to tender advice to the CE on representations made by civil servants against decisions to forfeit or recover their accrued benefits attributable to government voluntary contributions under the Civil Service Provident Fund Scheme.
 
      Ms Teresa Ko Yuk-yin is convenor-cum-member, while Professor Wong Sze-chun is the other serving member of the two appeal panels.

     A woman who went missing in Wong Tai Sin has been located.

     Sze-to Yee-wah, aged 72, went missing after she left her residence in Tsz Ching Estate on July 24 night. Her family made a report to Police yesterday (July 25).

     The woman returned to her residence last night. She sustained no injuries and no suspicious circumstances were detected.