'No rules broken' in cross-lease of flats in Mak case
Former civil service secretary, called to testify in ex-minister's housing subsidy fraud trial, says the practice was common and legal
The practice of cross-leasing flats was legal and common among civil servants in the 1980s as they used rental income to pay off mortgages, a former high-ranking government official told the District Court yesterday.
Former secretary for the civil service Joseph Wong Wing-ping was called by former development minister Mak Chai-kwong to testify in a housing allowance fraud trial involving Mak and assistant highways director Tsang King-man.
Mak, 62, and Tsang, 57, are accused of deceiving the government of HK$700,000 by using two properties in which they had a financial interest to claim rental allowances from 1986 to 1990.
Mak also faces two counts, and Tsang three, of using documents with intent to deceive the government. The pair deny the charges.
Asked by Eric Kwok Tung-ming SC, for Mak, whether there were any figures to show how common the cross-leasing practice was, Wong, who was responsible for civil servants' benefits in 1988, said the government did not conduct such surveys.
"The survey was not conducted as cross-leasing among civil servants did not breach any regulations," he said.
Wong also said he had not come across any situation in which civil servants would have declared their cross-leasing practice when they applied for housing subsidies.
