Rafael Hui 'did not declare conflict of interest during talks on West Kowloon arts hub'
Ex-official led arts hub project without mentioning past work with one bidder, trial told - a job defence counsel says had been widely reported
Former chief secretary Rafael Hui Si-yan did not declare any conflict of interest when he took part in government discussions on the West Kowloon Cultural District project in 2005, a high-level corruption trial heard yesterday.
Retired minister Michael Suen Ming-yeung - the most senior former official to take the witness stand so far - also said it had been "very important" for officials in the project to make their interests known. If discussions between the public and private sectors were not transparent, it could add to Hongkongers' concerns about collusion, he said.
Hui began chairing the steering committee of the arts hub after he became chief secretary in late June 2005, the High Court heard.
Before that, he was a consultant to Sun Hung Kai Properties from March 2004 to March 2005. An SHKP joint venture was a bidder for the arts hub.
Hui is alleged to have taken tens of millions of dollars from SHKP co-chairmen Thomas Kwok Ping-kwong and Raymond Kwok Ping-luen to be their "eyes and ears" in the government.
"Did Mr Hui make any declaration of any conflict of interest at any of the meetings of the steering committee which you attended?" lead prosecutor David Perry QC asked.
