More on Govt Payroll to Take Oath

More people on government payroll must take the oath

The campaign to get civil servants to take the oath continues, and not only does it apply to those in public office and 170,000 civil servants in all ranks, but also to those on non-civil service contracts, 

It was announced on Friday that 22,000 full time and part time staff hired for jobs such as cleaners on contract, plumbers, engineers, doctors, clerks, teachers in public schools, and even lifeguards at public swimming pools must pledge their allegiance to uphold the Basic Law. 

Leung worries people won't take govt jobs

They will have three weeks to decide to sign the declaration to take the oath of allegiance; if not, they face losing their jobs.

Oath taking was introduced following the implementation of the national security law late last June. Article 6 states that any resident "who stands for election or assumes public office" must swear to uphold the Basic Law and pledge allegiance to the city.

Leung Chau-ting, chairman of the Federation of Civil Service Unions, said non-civil service staff usually fill temporary or urgent positions.

"Most of them were hired on contracts which were renewed every year, and... the government has been hiring many people under non-civil service terms during the pandemic," he said.

Leung worried that the declaration requirement would deter some people from taking up or staying in these positions.

"Many of them are just front line staff joining the government on a short-term basis to share the civil servants' workload... They could be worried that after they signed the declaration, there would be things they cannot say or do."

Lifeguards at public pools must take oath now

While some might think the oath is just another requirement in exchange for a stable job and high salary, signing the declaration  can be used against them if they are not careful. 

Does a life guard taking the oath make them better at watching swimmers in the pool? A contract cleaner will be more patriotic in picking up garbage off the streets?

The mainlandization of Hong Kong continues.

 

 

 

Another Reason to get the Jab

Some 46 percent of recovered patients have low lung capacity

 

The topic dominating conversations these days is why people will not get vaccinated in Hong Kong.

How about this reason -- to avoid the long-term health effects after being infected with Covid-19.

A recent study in Hong Kong found almost half of recovered patients still suffer abnormal lung functions, such as shortness of breath, three months after being discharged.

As of April, about 46 percent of the 167 recovered patients at Princess Margaret Hospital in Lai Chi Kok had abnormal levels of oxygen going from their lungs to their bloodstream, three months after medical treatment.

Dr Tsang says exercise can help improve lungs

And nine months after treatment, lung function remained poor for 16.7 percent of the patients.

Dr Owen Tsang Tak-yin, medical director of the Hospital Authority's Infectious Disease Centre, said most of the abnormalities were experienced by elderly and chronically ill patients.

"They may experience shortness of breath while climbing stairs or running after a bus," he said, adding that regular exercise and a balanced diet could help patients improve their lung function over time.

Tsang said 16 percent of the more than 1,300 discharged patients had to undergo pulmonary function tests to show how well the lungs are working.

So far, more than 11,500 people, or 97.6 percent of Hong Kong's Covid-19 patients have been discharged.

The psychological impact of the virus has also left recovered patients stressed and depressed.

In a screening from between February 2020 and April 2021, 190 recovered patients responded, mostly women with the average age of 40.8 years.

Vaccines can prevent serious Covid symptoms

Some reported being worried for burdening others with having to go into government quarantine camps, some felt discriminated by neighbours or people around them, while others were terrified of being infected again and tried to avoid "dirty" places like washrooms. 

More than one-third felt Covid-19 was a threat to their lives, 19 percent suffered depressive symptoms, and 12.1 percent experienced severe anxiety.

The public needs to understand and sympathize with these patients after their traumatic experience, some of them were infected out of no fault of their own.

Not returning to regular lung capacity must be frightening too -- not being able to breathe properly months afterwards, and for how much longer?

And being psychologically scarred by the experience -- are these people getting the counselling they need to try to move on?

Getting infected by the virus is not to be taken lightly, which is why vaccination is so important. While the number of cases is very low in Hong Kong, one can still get infected by an asymptomatic person. Being vaccinated will make one's Covid-19 symptoms milder and easier to recover.

Isn't that the best reason for getting the jab?

But some 80 percent of Hong Kong's population doesn't seem to think so...

Get Vaccinated with Chance at Lucky Draw

Vials of Pfizer BioNTech vaccines ready to go... but no takers

 

Some pro-Beijing political parties are urging the government to entice more people to get the jab by offering more days off, vouchers and a chance of winning the lottery every week.

Dominic Lee Tsz-king of the New People's Party said people didn't want to get vaccinated because the Covid-19 situation in Hong Kong is relatively stable, and there are concerns about side effects.

Lee suggests a lottery to increase vaccinations

He suggested offering four days' paid holiday to workers if they get the jab.

"Right now if you have work, you work late then you probably can't make the deadline for taking the vaccination during weekdays... By providing holidays for them, I think it's going to encourage a lot of people to take the vaccines," he said.

New People's Party and Civil Force are suggesting the government could give people HK$2,000 in gift vouchers if they get vaccinated, and hold a pandemic lottery.

"We are also proposing a weekly lucky draw... once a week with a jackpot of HK$5 million. It should continue for a period of two months," said Lee.

While a hefty wad of cash may move a few people bare their arms for shots, Lee doesn't understand the fundamental problem is people's complete mistrust of the government at least since the protests in 2019, then followed by the national security law last June.

Only about 18 percent of HKers have got the jab

It also doesn't help the Department of Health issues notices of people who have died days or weeks following their jab even though their deaths are completely unrelated to the vaccine, giving the public the impression the jabs are ticking time bombs.

What else can be done to entice people to get jabs? Hard to say, but when the government already lost the trust of the people a few years ago, trying to earn it now is a little too late...

National Security Officer Cleared of Illegal Conduct

Wong says Choi cleared of illegal and immoral conduct

 

This evening the Hong Kong police have cleared the No. 2 national security officer of an illegal or immoral conduct when it was reported last Wednesday Frederic Choi Chin-pang was caught in a raid at an unlicensed massage parlour.

While it was revealed the actual incident took place in late March and only came to light over a month later, Chief Superintendent Ryan Wong Fai refused to divulge why Choi was in the massage parlour in the first place, what he was doing there, and how many times he had visited the illegal establishment.

Choi was caught in unlicensed massage parlour

"At the time Choi was found, at this moment, we have no evidence to suggest he was doing any illegal acts or committing any immoral acts," Wong said.

He added six women were arrested for alleged prostitution during the raid.  

Wong pointed out it was not unlawful to patronize an unlicensed parlour, but the force had investigated Choi out of concern about his integrity as a police officer.

Then why not disclose more details about why Choi was there and what he was doing? Apparently he suffered from back pain for some time, but again, why was he there? Surely a registered chiropractor could sort that out?

Lo mocks Choi's massage hobby

Lo Kin-hei, chairman of the opposition Democratic Party, expressed doubts about the impartiality of the police investigation and called for an independent review, especially as the force confirmed the incident only after the media reported it last week.

"Now what they mean is Choi is a gentleman, and amusingly he didn't choose to go anywhere else but a parlour that provided immoral services to enjoy a decent massage service. This is quite a special hobby," Lo said.

Andrew Shum Wai-nam, of the group Civil Rights Observer, said police should provide further details to explain why such a senior officer visited a place offering sex services.

Shum says police should provide more details

Meanwhile, Lau Siu-kai, vice-chairman of the semi-official Beijing think tank the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said the police report might not be detailed enough to win the trust of the public or mainland authorities.

In that case the police may have to really come clean on Choi or they may not have the blessing of Beijing much longer...