Time flies! Who would have thought that this has become the 3rd last meeting that our wonderful President Henry is going to chair. Not sure how much he is going to miss this chairmanship, but he did told us that he had begun his countdown. With his usual charm, President Henry expressed warm welcome to our guest and visiting Rotarians, including our PP John Kwok, who just happens to be promoted to a "grand-daddy"! Congratulations, PP John Kwok!!
A couple of rituals:- PE Rudy cordially welcomed our guests (PDG JP Lan of Mauritius; Rtn. Tony Luce of Princeton Corridor in New Jersey, USA and Rtn. Billy Ho of TST East). Rtn. Billy also introduced his guest, Keith Pong. PP Robert announced that the red box collection was HK$850, excluding a US$100 contribution by PP John Kwok. President Henry also reminded members of the Joint Board Meeting would be held on June 10, (6:30pm) at CCC, to be followed by a dinner for the Organizing Committee members at 7:30pm. We also circulated the banner of Kinnoull Club of Perth that was presented to HKIE by PDG MacDonald.
Although there was no speaker for our meeting, the highlight turned out to be a polite and calm debate between PP David Li and PP John Luk on the pros and cons of implementing the goods and services tax (GST) in Hong Kong. Uncle Peter acted as the moderator/referee for this friendly debate.
PP David Li flushed out the following points to support GST:-
- GST is different from Salary Tax, as the former is an indirect tax while the latter is direct. This will help the Government to enlarge our tax base and shift the burden of balancing budget deficit to encompass indirect tax.- It is not fair to ask a small percentage of the population to bear the indirect tax obligation. It should be borned by the mass population.
- Indirect tax establishes a relationship between the ability to pay tax and the level of consumption.
- Indirect tax measures consumers' ability to pay within a measurable time interval. So, from the perspective of balancing the Government's budget, indirect tax will give us a more stable source of tax revenue than income tax.PP John Luk argued that GST should not be adopted:-
- Government should not increase tax in the first place because this is against the general economic benefits of its citizen.- Our budget deficit could be reduced by other ways including improving the efficiency or reducing the size of the civil servant.
- According to the Mohs' Law, increasing the tax rate will initially increase tax revenue, but beyond a certain tax rate, the tax revenue will actually decrease due to excessive tax.
- The Government should promote economic development of Hong Kong instead.
- There will be a lot of accounting and administrative works to account for petit amounts.
- GST will also complicate HK's well established, efficient and simple tax system, which compares favorably with other tax systems such as US that had created an industry by itself.- Instead of GST, other taxes that use a more restrictive application criteria can be imposed. For example, tax based on per capital basis or a temporary basis can be considered.
- GST will negatively affect HK's image as a "Shopping Paradise", especially amongst the tourists.
As both debaters offered very convincing arguments, PP Tony had to propose that the debate would be continued in the next meeting. All members enjoyed the great fun and look forward to Part 2 of this in-house action!!
Pres. Henry concluded the remarks by both debaters and closed the meeting by proposing a toast to all Rotary Clubs around the world especially the Rotary Club of Vancouver Chinatown, The Rotary Club of TSTE, & Princeton Corridor, & The Rotary Club of Mauritius.
RI Credit Card Programme
More than 35,000 Rotarians and their spouses have applied for the Rotary International credit card since the programme was launched in September 2000. Currently available in Brazil, Ireland, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, the card builds public awareness of Rotary while allowing everyday purchases to raise money for The Rotary Foundation.
To date, the permanent fund of The Rotary Foundation has received US$1 million from the programme. In addition to that figure, another $650,000 in royalties was transferred to support the polio eradication fundraising campaign (PEFC). At its June 2002 meeting, the RI Board authorized up to $1 million to benefit the PEFC. Through member support of the programme, it is hoped that the remaining $350,000 can be raised before the end of 2003.
Because of their enthusiasm for all things Rotary, the programme has been particularly popular with new members. The growth of this programme during the past year has been instrumental in creating an annuity for The Rotary Foundation that will continue to grow, as more members become cardholders. In addition to using the cards to pay for personal expenses, members are using their cards to pay for business expenses as well as club meeting meals, district conferences, travel to the Convention, and other Rotary related expenses.
The following questions and answers will be helpful to Rotarians wishing to know more about the credit card programme.
Q. What are the benefits to RI and TRF when members acquire and use the card ?
A. Every time Rotarians use the card, a portion of the purchase amount will benefit TRF. The royalty percentage fluctuates from country to country and in some countries, a significant portion of the annual fee is also paid to The Rotary Foundation. In some cases, the royalty percentage increases with the number of Cards issued.
Q. Does Rotary benefit from each new card account ?
A. The cards must be activated and used on a continual basis to provide benefit to The Rotary Foundation. RI management works to insure the most competitive rates and services and constantly reviews card programmes. Points and mileage Programme are available in certain markets. Members choosing these Programmes must understand that Rotary receives a lower royalty percentage because of the cost of these programmes.
Q. Why are all Rotary Credit Cards a MasterCard ?
A. MasterCard international was selected as the exclusive brand for the card because of their global acceptance and the generous promotional and financial support that they have given to Rotary International.
Q. How can I apply for the Rotary Credit card ?
A. If you are located in a country with a program, contact your local Rotary office, District Governor, Rotary Regional Foundation Coordinator, or Robert Mintz for application information. Applications can be taken on line at RI websites in Brazil, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Q. When will my country have a program and can I contact a local bank to start a Programme ?
A. The credit card expansion strategy is to launch programmes in countries with large member applications and favourable banking law. Programmes are currently being negotiated for Taiwan, Italy, Australia and Spain. Future expansion is being considered for South Korea, the Philippines, several countries in Europe and the Middle East. Before a programme can be launched, a bid process is required to select a MasterCard issuing bank. RI staff must also review local laws, taxation, currency, and data protection issues. Only the General Secretary is empowered by the RI Board to expand the programme. To avoid conflict of interest issues, we prefer that members not contact local banks. To express interest for a programme in your country, please contact Robert Mintz, whose contact address is as follows:
Fax : 847-866-6297
Email : mintzr@rotaryintl.org.
Joke & Cartoon
On their first night to be together, the newlywed couple go to get changed.
The new bride comes out of the bathroom, all showered and wearing her beautiful robe.
The proud husband says, "My dear, we are married now, you can open your robe."
The beautiful young woman opens her robe, and he is astonished. "Oh, oh, aaaahhh," he exclaims, "My word, you are so beautiful, let me take your picture.
Puzzled, she asks, "My picture?"
He answers, "Yes my dear, so I can carry your beauty next to my heart forever."
She smiles and he takes her picture, and then he heads into the bathroom to shower.
He comes out wearing his robe and the new wife asks, "Why do you wear a robe? We are married now."
At that the man opens his robe and she exclaims, "Oh, oh, oh my, let me take a picture."
He beams and asks, "Why?"
She answers, "So I can get it enlarged"
Photographs of our Meeting
on
9th June, 2004
We had a debate on the GST & PP JL was against it
PP Li was for it
(L to R) PDG Uncle Peter, PP JL & Pres Henry at the left head table
(L to R) Hon Sec Eddy, PP Li & Pres.Peter Wu
(Vancouver Chinatown)
(L To R) Guest of Tony Luce, Rtn Tony Luce (Princeton Corridor), PE Rudy, DR Tony..
(L to R) Rtn Andrew, PP Billy Ho (TSTE), Dir Jason, PP Desmond, & VP Robert.
(L to R) Rtn Heron, PP's Hubert, George & John IV.
PDG Uncle Peter is the JUDGE.on the debate.
Group Photo of our Visitors, PDG Uncle Peter, Pres. Henry & members of our club on the 9th of June, 2004.
