Media reports say the name ‘Fung Wing Yip’ appeared on documents on behalf of Wiseson Limited, the other party in the contentious deal
DANNY.MOK@SCMP.COM
UPDATED : Friday, 08 April, 2016, 10:08am
Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung refuted the conflict of interest claim, saying the deal in question was handled by a property agent. Photo: Felix Wong
The conflict of interest allegations against Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung Ching Suk-yee and her husband Wilson Fung Wing-yip deepened on Thursday night as more details emerged.
According to media reports, the name “Fung Wing Yip” appeared on several property transaction supplemental agreements in February 2013 as the signee on behalf of Wiseson Limited.
Wiseson was the other party in the property deal with Betty Fung that is now being looked into by the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
The company’s sole owner is Cheyenne Chan, also a shareholder of Sky Shuttle, a commercial helicopter operator. Chan is sister to Macau tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun’s third wife, Ina Chan Un Chan.
Wilson Fung was a senior civil servant in the former Economic Development and Labour Bureau in charge of aviation affairs from 2003 to 2006. Sky Shuttle won a franchise to operate services from Sheung Wan to Macau in 2007.
It was not known whether Fung was the signee of those agreements. He is currently the Airport Authority’s executive director for corporate development.
News portal HK01 said in a report on Thursday night that Wilson Fung had met Chan on aviation business in 2004. They both shared a common interest in property investments.
The authority reportedly asked Fung to go on leave from Thursday, according to HK01, though other media reports disputed this.
A spokesman from the authority said he would not comment on affairs relating to an individual worker’s leave.
The developments came two days after the ICAC decided to investigate the conflict of interest accusations against Betty Fung, according to League of Social Democrats chairman Avery Ng Man-yuen, who filed a complaint to the watchdog on Saturday.
Local media reported on Friday that Betty Fung had signed an agreement with Wiseson in November 2013, when she was the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services.
Under the deal, Fung swapped her One Robinson Place property in Mid-Levels for the company’s two properties in Happy Valley. She would pay Wiseson HK$6.5 million, about HK$3 million less than the market price.
On the day of the report, Fung made a statement refuting the conflict of interest claim, saying the swapping was handled by a property agent, she had never been in touch with the other side, and she had no knowledge of who owned Wiseson before media approached her.
The Home Affairs Bureau told reporters on Thursday that it had no further comment.
Democratic Party chief executive Lam Cheuk-ting, a former ICAC investigator, said Betty Fung’s explanation was unconvincing, and she would urge for a suspension until an investigation was completed.
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1934588/alleged-conflict-interest-over-property-sale-more-details
