Attention TV/radio announcers:

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     Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (June 27) that the Ping Shan Tin Shui Wai Swimming Pool in Yuen Long District has been temporarily closed for cleaning and superchlorination following the discovery of a small amount of vomit in the pool.

     It will be reopened at 6.30am tomorrow.

     The department appeals to swimmers to be considerate and to keep the swimming pools clean. They are advised not to swim after a full meal and should use the toilet facilities if necessary before swimming. 

     â€‹The Government Flying Service (GFS) and the Civil Aviation Flight University of China (CAFUC) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) today (June 27) to underpin closer collaboration.
      
     Witnessed by the Controller of the GFS, Captain West Wu, and Vice-President of the CAFUC Mr Ouyang Ting, the MOU was signed by the Chief Pilot (Training and Standards) of the GFS, Captain Wong Yiu-hong, and the President of Guanghan Flight College of the CAFUC, Mr Ge Zhibin.
      
     The MOU aims to further implement the construction of emergency response and rescue forces proposed in the National 14th Five-Year Plan through better nurturing of aviation rescue command talent, pilots and technical support forces, and providing more opportunities for young people in Hong Kong to develop their careers in the aviation industry.
      
     Captain Wu said at the signing ceremony that he hoped the co-operation will leverage the strengths of both parties in the aviation profession to deepen talent exchanges and offer opportunities to young people in Hong Kong aspiring to join the aviation industry to contribute to the emergency response and rescue effort of the country.

        

     In a total of five separate prosecution cases, six public rental housing (PRH) residents were each sentenced to 14 days' imprisonment (suspended for 12 months) and were fined $5,000 or $10,000 for not declaring their Hong Kong domestic property when applying for PRH and declaring their income and assets.
 
     A spokesman for the Housing Department (HD) today (June 27) reminded PRH applicants and residents of PRH estates to declare truthfully their income and assets.
 
     Information of the five cases are as follows:
 
Case 1:
     A PRH resident living in On Tai Estate declared in the Declaration in Respect of Admission to Public Rental Housing (PRH) in 2018 that he did not have any domestic property ownership in Hong Kong from the date of registration for the PRH application to the time of admission to PRH. Subsequent investigation revealed that he jointly owned a domestic property in Tai Kok Tsui at the material time.
 
Case 2:
     A PRH resident living in On Tai Estate declared in the Declaration in Respect of Admission to Public Rental Housing (PRH) in 2018 that he did not have any domestic property ownership in Hong Kong from the date of registration for the PRH application to the time of admission to PRH. Subsequent investigation revealed that he solely owned a domestic property in Kai Tak at the material time.
 
Case 3:
     A PRH resident living in On Tai Estate declared in the Declaration in Respect of Admission to Public Rental Housing (PRH) in 2018 that he did not have any domestic property ownership in Hong Kong from the date of registration for the PRH application to the time of admission to PRH. Subsequent investigation revealed that he jointly owned a domestic property in Eastern District at the material time.
 
     The PRH residents in Cases 1 to 3 were prosecuted for making a false statement knowingly in the respective declaration forms, contrary to Section 26(1)(c) of the Housing Ordinance. All of them were convicted in the Kwun Tong Magistrates' Courts on June 24. Given the gravity of the offence, the defendants were sentenced to 14 days' imprisonment (suspended for 12 months) and were fined $5,000 or $10,000. The HD has already recovered one of the subject PRH flats and is going to issue a notice-to-quit to another tenant, while the other subject PRH flat will be surrendered by the end of July.
 
Case 4:
     Two PRH residents living in Sau Mau Ping South Estate declared in the 2022 Income and Assets Declaration Forms that they did not have any domestic property ownership in Hong Kong. Subsequent investigation revealed that they jointly owned a domestic property in To Kwa Wan.  
 
Case 5:
     A PRH resident living in Kwong Tin Estate declared in the 2023 Income and Assets Declaration Forms that he did not have any domestic property ownership in Hong Kong. Subsequent investigations revealed that he solely owned a domestic property in Ngau Tau Kok at the material time.
 
     The PRH residents in Cases 4 and 5 were prosecuted for refusing or neglecting to furnish information specified in the declaration form, contrary to Section 27(a) of the Housing Ordinance. They were convicted in the Kwun Tong Magistrates' Courts on June 24. Given the gravity of the offence, the defendants were sentenced to 14 days' imprisonment (suspended for 12 months) and were fined $5,000 or $10,000. The HD has already recovered one of the subject PRH flats and is going to issue a notice-to-quit to the other tenant.
 
     The spokesman reminded all PRH applicants that if any persons are convicted by the courts for making a false statement knowingly during a PRH application, contrary to Section 26(1)(c) of the Housing Ordinance, the maximum penalty is a fine of $50,000 and imprisonment for six months. The PRH application concerned will be cancelled while any allocated PRH unit will be recovered by the HD.
 
     He also reminded PRH residents that households living in PRH should accurately complete their Income and Assets Declaration Forms. Before furnishing particulars specified in the requisition required by the Hong Kong Housing Authority, households should read the content and completion guidelines of the Income and Assets Declaration Forms carefully and compute their income and assets in accordance with the methods specified. Otherwise, they may be prosecuted for making a false statement knowingly, contrary to Section 26(1)(a) of the Housing Ordinance. If convicted, the maximum penalty is a $50,000 fine and imprisonment for six months. Alternatively, they may be prosecuted for refusing or neglecting to furnish information as specified in a declaration form, contrary to Section 27(a) of the Housing Ordinance. If convicted, the maximum penalty is a $25,000 fine and imprisonment for three months. The HD will take action to recover the undercharged rent incurred due to the inaccurate information furnished by the households or even recover their PRH units.
 
     The spokesman reiterated that the public in general recognises the HD's efforts in combating the abuse of PRH resources. The HD will continue to adopt multipronged and risk-based measures to comprehensively combat tenancy abuse. The HD will take decisive tenancy management and law enforcement actions against tenants who are found to have abused PRH and breached the tenancy agreement or relevant policies, in order to ensure that the precious PRH resources are allocated to those most in need.

     Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) hosted a themed seminar this afternoon (June 27) to brief incoming talent on corruption prevention and anti-deception practices to raise their awareness of the relevant crimes.

     At the seminar, a representative from the Community Relations Department of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) introduced Hong Kong's anti-corruption laws and drew the attention of incoming talent to the fact that government and public sector employees do not accept tips from the public, and that bribing employees of private organisations is illegal. Also, the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance has not specified the minimum threshold for the amount of advantage for the purpose of corruption offences. The ICAC has kept reviewing various investment entrant and talent admission schemes with the relevant government departments in order to strengthen regulating the schemes and stamp out malpractices. The ICAC appealed to members of the public, including incoming talent, to join hands in maintaining Hong Kong's culture of integrity.

     In addition, a representative of the Anti-Deception Coordination Centre of the Commercial Crime Bureau of the Hong Kong Police Force updated incoming talent on the latest deception trends at the seminar, and urged them to heighten vigilance against telephone deception tricks, including phone scammers impersonating Mainland law enforcement officers or bank staff, and other common types of deception such as online employment and investment frauds, as well as romance and online shopping scams. A representative from the Financial Intelligence and Investigation Bureau of the Police reminded incoming talent that criminal syndicates often induce account holders to provide personal accounts or personal information to create virtual bank accounts by offering monetary remuneration or using different excuses. They then collect and transfer the crime proceeds using such stooge accounts for the purpose of money laundering. Members of the public, including incoming talent, should properly protect their personal information and never lend or sell personal accounts to any third party.

     Incoming talent may refer to the ICAC's education resources on corruption prevention (www.icac.org.hk/icac/smart/en/index.html) for details on anti-corruption laws and related information. For scam prevention, incoming talent may use Scameter on the CyberDefender website (cyberdefender.hk/en-us/scameter/) or the mobile application "Scameter+" to verify suspicious or high-risk transaction counterparts. If in doubt, they should call the Anti-Scam Helpline 18222 for enquiries. Moreover, at the themed seminar today, a speaker from a local talent networking group shared with participants Hong Kong's social culture and customs.

     HKTE has held online and physical seminars or workshops from March 2024 in collaboration with working partners on a wide range of topics, such as job seeking, business start-ups, education, accommodation, living tips and Cantonese learning. Talent who have arrived in Hong Kong may obtain event details from HKTE's social media or by contacting HKTE via email (hkte@hkengage.gov.hk).

     The Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, and the Permanent Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Ms Shirley Lam, led more than 20 youth volunteer interns participating in the United Nations Volunteers – Hong Kong Universities Volunteer Internship Programme to visit the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (OCMFA) today (June 27), and met with Deputy Commissioner of the OCMFA Mr Fang Jianming. The Chairman of the Agency for Volunteer Service (the co-organiser of the Programme), Ms Melissa Kaye Pang, also joined the visit. 
      
     The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau promulgated the Youth Development Blueprint in end-2022. The vision is to nurture a new generation of young people with an affection for the country and for Hong Kong and equipped with global perspectives, an aspiring mindset and positive thinking, who will make contributions to the development of the country and the city. The Government launched the Programme in collaboration with the United Nations (UN) Volunteers and provides funding support to local university students to undertake six-month volunteer placements in different UN agencies. This would help young people develop their personal capabilities and expand their horizons, and also provide an opportunity for them to contribute to the international community in the capacity as Chinese youth volunteers. This year, the Programme offers a total of 25 internship placements in different UN agencies located in Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos, Nepal, Tajikistan, Thailand, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
      
     During her remarks, Miss Mak expressed gratitude to the OCMFA for its support to the Programme, especially the arrangements of today's visit. She also thanked the representatives from the Department of International Organizations and Conferences of the OCMFA for introducing the work of the OCMFA to the youth volunteer interns, which would help deepen their understanding of the country's foreign affairs prior to their departure. She mentioned that this year's Programme has been expanded to cover more countries along the Belt and Road regions and was well received by young people, with the number of applications nearly doubled compared to the previous year. She said she hopes that the interns could broaden their global perspectives, understand China's contributions and influences across the world through this valuable experience, and also take the opportunity to tell the world good stories of Hong Kong.
      
     The youth volunteer interns will depart to undertake volunteer placements in the UN agencies (e.g. the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Children's Fund, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, etc) starting from next month.