The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority: Queen Mary Hospital (QMH) and the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH) signed a collaborative agreement today (December 8) to promote exchange and co-ope… read more
The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, attended the Passing-out Parade for the 136th-139th Customs Inspector Induction Courses and the 488th-491st Customs Officer Induction Courses at the Hong Kong Customs College today (December 8) to inspect 79 Probationary Customs Inspectors and 94 Probationary Customs Officers on parade. For the first time, there are six Probationary Customs Inspectors among the passing-out officers who are also members of the Customs Youth Leader Corps.
The Guards of Honour and all passing-out officers adopted the Chinese-style foot drill to form the bauhinia pattern which represents the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) during the foot drill performance. This arrangement symbolised the passing-out officers bearing allegiance to the HKSAR. Then, the parade formed a pattern that represents the world, demonstrating the full support of Hong Kong Customs for the country’s Belt and Road Initiative. The performance concluded with the pattern symbolising the District Council election to appeal to voters to vote.
In his speech, Mr Chan said with the staunch support of the country, Hong Kong has been fully implementing the National Security Law and embarking on the new journey from stability to prosperity in full normalcy after the epidemic, and that Hong Kong Customs shoulders four important missions along this course.
On safeguarding national security and maintaining social stability, Mr Chan praised Hong Kong Customs for its remarkable achievements in combating smuggling and drug trafficking syndicates. Pointing out that the number of relevant cases detected in the first 10 months this year has seen an over 50 per cent year-on-year increase, Mr Chan stressed that Customs officers have to stay vigilant at all times and adopt the bottom-line thinking.
Capitalising on Hong Kong’s distinctive advantage of enjoying the strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world, Mr Chan reckoned that the leadership role of Hong Kong Customs on the international stage has become more noticeable. In addition to the endorsement by the World Customs Organization (WCO) to establish a WCO Regional Dog Training Centre in Hong Kong, Hong Kong Customs will take up the post of the WCO Vice-Chairperson for the Asia/Pacific Region from 2024 to 2026. The department is also dedicated to expediting the development of Smart Customs and has launched the Smart Customs, Smart Borders and Smart Connectivity Initiative together with the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China to facilitate the high quality development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
To improve people’s livelihood, Mr Chan said that Hong Kong Customs is committed to protecting the rights and interests of consumers. The department has handled more than 10 000 complaints relating to the Trade Descriptions Ordinance in the first 10 months this year to rigorously crack down on unscrupulous traders in order to ensure a safe and pleasant shopping experience for the public and visitors.
On promoting youth development, Mr Chan said Hong Kong Customs established in 2021 a youth development programme known as Customs YES to nurture positive mindsets and law-abiding behaviour of young people, and to heighten their sense of national identity.
Mr Chan encouraged the passing-out officers to achieve Hong Kong Customs’ objective of “Connectivity towards Security and Prosperity”, and strive to provide diverse and quality customs services, making significant new contributions to the country and Hong Kong.
The District Council election is to be held the day after tomorrow (December 10). Mr Chan called upon fellow colleagues, friends and guests to fulfil their civic responsibilities by voting for the District Council members they trust, with whom they can build together a prosperous and harmonious community.
The Awards Presentation Ceremony of the Asia Pacific Information and Communications Technology Alliance (APICTA) Awards 2023 was held today (December 8). In the event organised by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) and the Hong Kong Computer Society (HKCS), Hong Kong teams achieved remarkable results again, bagging a record-breaking total of seven Winner and 13 Merit Awards among over 250 entries, ranking first among the 16 participating economies.
This year’s APICTA Awards, hosted by Hong Kong for the third time since 2004 and 2013, brought together over 600 leaders and elites of the information and communications technology (ICT) industry from across the Asia Pacific region. Through four days of award judging and networking activities, the event promoted collaboration in the region’s ICT sector and provided opportunities for participants to experience the leading advantages of Hong Kong’s innovation and technology (I&T) development.
The Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, congratulated all winning teams at the awards presentation ceremony and applauded their outstanding achievements, which inspired the ICT innovators across the Asia Pacific region. Professor Sun said that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government values the contributions of talent with diverse backgrounds and expertise, and will pursue the prevailing strategy of attracting and retaining talent with a view to nurturing an even more vibrant and thriving I&T ecosystem.
The Government Chief Information Officer, Mr Tony Wong, presented awards to winners at the ceremony and commended their outstanding performances. Hong Kong teams performed exceptionally well among over 250 award entries. The list of award-winning projects by Hong Kong teams is in the attachment.
The OGCIO and HKCS, with co-sponsorship by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, also hosted “Hong Kong Night” at Cyberport last night (December 7), enabling Hong Kong teams to present their insights, innovative ideas and technology solutions to representatives from other participating economies. Earlier that afternoon, three networking sessions were arranged to facilitate insightful exchanges among primary, secondary and tertiary students of the member economies, as well as forge new connections for start-ups with their counterparts and investors from across the member economies.
Brunei Darussalam has been chosen as the host of the 23rd APICTA Awards next year.
The APICTA Awards is an acclaimed international awards programme organised annually by the APICTA. Through the concerted support of the 16 member economies, the APICTA Awards is highly regarded by the ICT industry in the Asia Pacific region. More details of the Awards are available on the thematic website apicta2023.hk.
Details of the organisation approved to conduct the exit poll on the polling day of the 2023 District Council Ordinary Election were uploaded onto the election website (www.elections.gov.hk/dc2023/eng/exitpoll.html) today (December 8). The information will also be displayed at relevant polling stations on the polling day.
The Registration and Electoral Office (REO) received an application from the Hong Kong Research Association before the deadline to conduct the exit poll, and has approved the organisation to conduct the exit poll at designated polling stations.
“To forestall public perception of unfairness, an organisation approved to conduct the exit poll is subject to the preconditions that it does not have member(s) contesting the election, has not publicly expressed support for any candidate(s) in the election, and will not deploy member(s) of any organisation which has member(s) contesting the election or member(s) of any organisation which has publicly expressed support for candidate(s) contesting the election to conduct the exit poll,” a spokesman for the REO said.
“The organisation is required to make a statutory declaration not to announce or disclose the information or results of the exit poll before the close of the poll. In particular, it should not release the results to any candidate(s) contesting the election, media, any person, body or organisation which has publicly expressed support for any candidate(s) contesting the election, or any body or organisation with a member or members contesting the election. It should not directly or indirectly use the information or results of the exit poll for electioneering purposes in promoting and prejudicing the election of candidate(s),” the spokesman added.
“In addition, the organisation should not make specific remarks or predictions on the performance of any candidate(s) before the close of the poll as this may affect electors’ voting behaviour and have an impact on election results.
“All approved exit poll interviewers are required to display prominently an identification device showing clearly the identity of the organisation conducting the poll and the name of the interviewer during the conduct of the exit poll. Also, they should not speak to or communicate with the candidates or their agents there.
“Interviews are not allowed inside polling stations. It is the right of electors to keep their votes secret and electors’ participation in the exit poll is wholly voluntary,” the spokesman reiterated.
The REO reminded the public that the Government has not commissioned any organisation or person to conduct the exit poll for the Government.
For enquiries, please call the election hotline on 2891 1001. read more
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) today (December 8) said that one new confirmed melioidosis infection case had been recorded in the past week (December 1 to 7). &… read more