| This
is the biweekly bulletin of the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong Club Website: http://www.rotary3450.org/kingspark-hongkong | ||||
 | Kingspark News Rotary
Club of Kingspark |  | ||
| Chief
Editor : Francis Wann Club Webmaster : John Wan | ||||
Editorial
(Anyone Listening?) - By Francis Wann | ||||
| Anyone Listening? The past four weeks have seen some of our major players in the Government and business vying for media attention with probably Henry Tang the Financial Secretary sinking in the dock trying to come to terms with his own wealth-generating philosophy. Strange that Mr Tang had his Midas touch on almost everything financial and beyond, and even stranger is his strategy towards our deficits which continues to snowball and which has prompted him to seek another two years to balance his budget. Poor Henry was clearly out of his luck when he appeared at a recent LegCo's Finance Committee being asked (by Emily Lau) if he's waiting for luck. Of course he is, and who else is not indeed. Equally optimistic is InvestHK's Mike Rowse who must have become the most-quoted senior Government official outside the financial sector. When asked about AmCham's involvement in HarbourFest, he said "they (AmCham) 've invented an idea and given it to us and all we've done is to give them temporary custody of those rights for the next five years..." The rights he referred to is exclusive television rights for the use of the name HarbourFest. Now HarbourFest came under the Economic Relaunch Working Group of which Henry Tang is the chairman, and details of the HarbourFest contract would be disclosed in February. Meanwhile, the controversy continues even as the Fest has just ended. Yes the HarbourFest ended last Sunday with the Rolling Stones rocking Hong Kong at our roots, and momentarily they made us forget the hassles of modern day life. Of course our problems won't go away. Outside Tamar Site, it's business as usual, and suddenly we're back to the drama surrounding the resignation of the disspirited Michael Wong Kin-chow, the Chairman of the Equal Opportunities Commission. Now that the jobless figure has gone down by 0.4 percentage point to 8.3 %, the Government certainly does not want people to focus on the youth unemployment rates which have risen to over 38%. Faced with a possible 11% cut in higher education spending, students at City University and PolyU had planned to boycott classes this week. They called it off at the 11th hour, but perhaps it's time our youngsters deliver a clearer message. This week marks the conclusion of our 44th District Conference. Has anyone picked up any words of wisdom inside or outside the Convention Centre? Anyone out there? Anyone listening? | ||||
President's
Column A Busy November November is a busy month for me. I began the month greeting and taking care of 7 Rotarians from our sponsored club – R.C. of Zunnmod from Mogolina for 8 days. The delegation consisted of one man and six ladies. On 5 November, I visited our sister club Sathorn in Bangkok with four members, their spouses and 9 Rotaractors. We had arranged to meet up with members of our other sister club R.C. of Tai Pei – Chung Yuen in Bangkok. Before we left, we completed the production of our club roster and our tenth anniversary watch. The District Conference followed and 21 November will see our 3rd Interactor club with St. Bendict school formally installed. It seems that club meetings, anniversary parties and District events have filled up my diary and I was counting the evenings I could not have dinner with my family. Luckily, I have full support from them. So far, I have received no complaint from my children and wife. Their understanding has certainly helped me fulfil my duties of the presidency and I thank them for that. Back to the Rotarians from Mongolia, that was my first encounter and I found the experience quite interesting. They are born optimistic, they see everything positively and they are happy all the time. For example, they would sing and dance wherever and whenever they feel like it, they would refuse food they don’t want to eat, and they would ask for what they want without any embarrassment. Somehow, they behave just like children, and this is what I treasure most in those 8 days. In Bangkok, I had three missions. The first was to take part in the opening ceremonies of three community service projects undertaken by our sister club. The projects are (1) Water for the thirsty, and clothes for those in rags; (2) Music for life; and (3) Treasure of knowledge. Our club and Sathorn had jointly applied for a matching grant to finance the Music for life project, the objective of which is to pay for the music instrument and tutor fees for the boys in the orphanage so that they can become musicians in the future and make a living. Our club has committed US$1,250 this year. During the ceremony, their District Governor told me that their district conference would be held in March 2004 and invited me to attend this conference. She was confident that our project stood a good chance to win an award. She hoped I could share the honor with President Pradit in the conference. I do hope so. The second mission was to sign a new friendship pact for the next two years. As President Pradit said, “This would be our sixth renewal.” In my speech I read out the names of their ten past presidents in sequence. I think their members were quite impressed by my attempt to reassure them our commitment to a sister club. My third mission was to introduce R.C. of Tai Pei – Chung Yuen to Sathorn and to enable them to develop mutual understanding between them so that we could all become joint sister clubs. President Austin Sze has agreed to report back, and I am hopeful of a good response. Every time we visit our sister club Sathorn we receive extremely warm and exciting hospitality and enoy wonderful programs arranged by them. I would skip the details here because I believe our members would write something on the experience. Here, I would simply extend my thanks to our sister club for their hardwork and their warm hospitality, and I also thank our club members Sunny, Joyce, Raymond, Tom, Feroz and Michael for helping to take care the members from Mongolia, and to Ted Ho, Anwer, Thomas, Michael and their spouse for joining me on this trip. | ||||
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Art
and Life Last month, my wife and I had a wonderful night in the Concert Hall of the Cultural Centre listening to St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. The musical director and chief conductor was Yuri Temirkanov and he gave the audience an excellent performance. The programme included "Dawn on the Moscow River (from Khovanshchina)" by Mussorgsky, "Cello Concerto in B Minor, B.191" by Dvorak and "Symphony No.2 in E Minor, Op.27" by Rachmaninov. The response of the audience had led me to conclude that the musicians had brought us great joy and satisfaction. If you missed this performance, you might buy the CDs of this famous Russian orchestra. We are all very busy with our work, family and other commitments. No matter how strong one is, one would find all that stressful. Some would try to reduce stress through physical exercise which have proved to be capable of eliminating undesired energies inside the body. On the other hand, we may spend a few hours a week on art-related activities to soothe our minds. For example, watching a drama or ballet performance, enjoying a classic or contemporary music performance, going to art museums or antique shops, or taking up painting and Chinese calligraphy, and so on. If you embark on these activities with your family members and good friends, the results could be even much better and more enjoyable. Although Hong Kong is not the top city for its cultural activities, we still have many high quality local artists with regular performances here. In addition, a lot of foreign stars visit Hong Kong frequently, especially during the Hong Kong Arts Festival and other international events held in Hong Kong. Even as the Hong Kong HarbourFest 2003 has attracted numerous controversies, we cannot deny the fact that most of its performers are international superstars. Meanwhile, Macau has recently kicked off its Arts festival as part of its tourism promotion programme. Macau is indeed a viable alternative. The performers are usually world class and the tickets are very affordable as there is strong support from the government and private sponsorship. Apart from the shows, you can enjoy the delicious food there as well during the trip in Macau. If your budget permits, try to visit the famous opera houses and concert halls in the European countries and the US. It will certainly make your trips unforgettable and different from those of most of the other Hong Kong travelers. My recollection of watching performances in the Royal Albert Hall, Majestic Theatre and Bastille Opera House are still very fresh although I watched the performances there more than three years ago. Participating in art activities gives us the unique chance to appreciate art. We often overlook the importance of such faculty as many of us think that it doesn't have much practical value. In fact, such faculty helps us to better understand the diversity and merits of cultural differences, which is the corner stone in a harmonious world. Besides, as many forms of art like music and painting are originated from Mother Nature, we can better appreciate the beauties of the natural world through such activities. Without any appreciation of Mother Nature, it will be much less convincing to ask ourselves to love it by not overusing the natural resources. From the historical perspective, we can know more about our own history and other races while enjoying such activities. It is an effective and interesting means to enrich our national and international education and that of our next generation. So, what are you waiting for? Let us find some interesting art events and enjoy them with your loved ones. | ||||
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By VP Dominic Ko 1905 was when the first seed was sowed onto a yard of rough and dry soil. For nearly a century now, Paul Harris has grown a plant so massive that no one could ever have imagined. It is now referred as the prestigious Rotary International, with the name derived from when the earliest meetings were “rotated” among members’ offices. As the world’s first service club, Rotary, an organization of business and professional leaders united worldwide provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. In 166 countries worldwide, approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 30,000 Rotary clubs. The Interact Club of Wah Yan College, Kowloon is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong under its Community Service Programme. Now, the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong has also extended the programme to St Benedict’s school; and the Wah Yan College, Kowloon would like to give its utmost support to the Interact Club of St Benedict’s school to further the Object of Rotary and to Lend a Hand to those in need. Before I give you a brief introduction of our club, let me share with you a tale to demonstrate the theme of our club. There was a blind man. He always took a brightly lit lantern with him whenever he walked at night. People were curious. They asked him, “You cannot see, why do you take the lantern when you walk?” The blind man said, “It is simple. The lantern is not for myself. It is for others. By showing people the way, they will not run into me. When I help others, I am actually helping myself.” Similar to what Fr. Derek Reid said “You should not curse the darkness but light a candle.” This is what we want to learn and do together in Interact clubs. By showing people the way, by shedding light on others, through leadership development, through service, through care and concern, through support and co-operation, through teamwork with others, we achieve personal growth, we become mature and independent. In order to accomplish this, the Interact club has put in place an annual activities plan. These various activities are briefly summarized as below. The President of our Interact club for this academic year (2003-2004) was elected in late September. Led by William Tong, a committee was then formed composing of 17 students. Recruitment began immediately in October, and they have since successfully recruited around 100 members. In November, we will participate in the Caritas Bazaar. Later on, we would participate in serving the children of St James Settlement. (Details of the above two events would be mentioned later.) After that, a camp quality Christmas carnival would be run in December. In February, we will organize a leadership speech to be given by outstanding alumni, we hope to have Martin C.M. Lee there. In March, a leadership training camp in a university will be held followed by the WYK School Open Day. There will also be a Joint School Easter Camp in April. In July, an international understanding trip will be held. Finally, in Summer, there will be a social service programme for the children in Harmony House - we would teach them basketball, painting and handicraft. Furthermore, we will take part in the Hong Kong International Model United Nation and have a joint school leadership summer camp. Now let me go into the details. For the Caritas Bazaar (on 16th of November), we have already contacted the person in charged of this program and are given a stall. On that day we will conduct two games in our stall. One involves in stacking up containers filled with water on a tray in the air, which is held by thick strings at each side, the tray therefore would sway and possess difficulties for the contestant. As the number of containers increase on the tray, it will sway even more vigorously. When the empty containers reach the pole that is dangled in the air perpendicularly or stack up to 10 containers above the tray, the contestant may enroll for the other game. Using that pole that he obtained, he will then have to guide the pole inside a metal track which is connected to a power source. The metal track is composed of four words “IACT” which is the abridged form of InterACT. Sounds would be emitted if the pole and the metal wire collide. The player would lose if sounds were to erupt for more than 3 times. On the 22nd of November, the Interact club of Wah Yan College Kowloon will co-operate with Wah Yan College Hong Kong and St Benedict school on a social service project. A project which involves in serving the children at St James. Our school would send out 10 - 15 members to play with the children and to ensure that the event would run smoothly. The service would probably begin around 9:00 am and end at around 4:00 pm. During that time, the children will play games such as musical chairs, self-portraying etc in the morning and then after lunch, they would join football, basketball or chess games. The "Community Leader Training Scheme" project involves five colleges, viz., Wah Yan College Kowloon, Wah Yan College Hong Kong, St Clare’s, St Benedict and Ho Tung College. This project is a long term project which starts in December and end in July. About 50 interactors would start a social service project themselves in December. Then around March those who have participated earlier in the social service project will attend another leadership training camp. After participating in both activities, the interactors may then be well developed on both sides. The above is just a shrewd plan, other activities would be added later on. | ||||
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By James Huang (Rotarian James Huang now operates in Shanghai but continues to attend meetings.) To all the members of the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong, I send you my greetings from Shanghai. I know over the past few months, I have been absent from many club meetings and events due to my work schedule taking me away from Hong Kong. When I joined Rotary early this year, I could not predict the profound effect that SARS and business in China would have on my business and personal life. As such, I now make my home most of the time in Shanghai. Last Monday (Oct. 27) PP Ted Ho called my office in Hong Kong in the afternoon to invite me to the weekly happy hour. As I only had one day in Hong Kong and had a prior dinner meeting, I asked Ted if we could meet a little earlier so that I could leave earlier. It was a wonderful time to be able to discuss Rotary Club matters with him and President Peter when he finally showed up. This showed me that even with my absenteeism, my fellow Rotarian’s had not forgotten about me, as I have not forgotten about them. Being able to do make ups in the Rotary Club of Shanghai (Provisional) and on the Rotary E-Club website does not begin to make up for the fellowship that your own home club can bring you. Furthermore, being away from the home club also takes away from the charity and vocational work for which I joined Rotary for. As I understand it, my original idea of a Big Brother Big Sister program is being started by the Rotaract Club of Kingspark Hong Kong. I think this is wonderful, yet I am upset and sad that I did not take a more active role in the establishment of this project. So I ask myself, what can I do as a Rotarian away from my home club? As I suggested to President Peter and PP Ted at the happy hour, I hope to be able to leverage my time here in Shanghai to perhaps do some cooperative projects with the Rotary Club of Shanghai. Even though this club is very different from ours, I see that there are a lot of common elements to what we strive to do as Rotarians, wherever we are. Some of the projects that the Shanghai Club has undertaken are actually quite remarkable. For instance, their “Gift of Life” program work with the Shanghai Chest Hospital to provide operations to children from throughout China. For this Rotary year, they have provided money and support for 55 children to have operations of various sorts. Their goal is to have 100 children operated on by the end of this Rotary year. This is quite an achievement for a club of only 30 people. They also have sponsored an Ambassadorial Scholar from the United States this year to study mandarin at Shanghai Normal University. I have met Leanne Albrecht at one of the Rotary meetings and can tell you that she is very appreciative of this opportunity to study abroad and to learn about a new culture. Her appreciation for her home club in San Francisco and the Shanghai Club will mean that there is a future Rotarian in the making to continue the good work carried out by us today. Also, for such a new Club, the Shanghai Rotary Club is consistently at 100% Paul Harris Fellow. This doesn’t mean that they donate more money to Rotary International or try to make up for the lack of support from the District or Rotary International by digging deeper into their pockets. These members give of their time and money because they believe in the philosophy of Rotary. As a provisional club in China and one that can only allow members with foreign passports into the club, they are restricted by the Chinese government in many things they can do, but the Shanghai Club has overcome these difficulties and have done some remarkable things. I ask my fellow Rotarian’s, might we not be able to work together to find projects to do here in China? As I have already stated to a few of Kingspark’s members, Hong Kong is too small to support so many clubs. Of course every club finds its niche and functions nicely without overlapping with other clubs, but we have the opportunity to do much more in China before other clubs are set up in China. We talk about Hong Kong as the gateway to China, well here is an opportunity for us to really show people that we are relevant as a window to China. And in a country with 1.3 billion people, I’m sure there are plenty of worthy causes for us to get involved in. I welcome member’s feedback on this proposal. | ||||
(An Audience with DGE Alex) By Francis Wann (The
author had meant for the article to be published on 15 November, but PDG Johnson Chu once called him Potential DG. At an annual District Ball, he was referred to as PDG Alex Mak as a punch line... Just under two years ago I spoke to Alexander Mak at the Mandarin Oriental, and when I asked his comments on an earlier comment from CP John who made the biting remark that "many people joined Rotary for the wrong reasons, his response was immediate and resolute "Who cares what he joined Rotary for?" And just two weeks ago I raised the same question before him, now DGE Alexander and who's been groomed for the post over the months. I was thinking at least he would be more diplomatic and that in his official position he'd better mince his words. But instead Alex told me he'd rather stand by his word. During the last interview I asked off the record whether he had intention to run for governorship, he said he'd never thought about that, and nevertheless "I don't have that ambition". What made him change his course? Well he said, it's not any single factor, but the most defining one would be his experience in Barcelona for the 2002 Rotary Convention which has given him much insight. Alex would not elaborate on details, even when asked about how he saw his present role as DGE, and his future role as District Governor later. I remember he told me he regards himself an introvert. Does he not think the role of DG involves a bit of image branding exercise, and a bit of public relations? In a recent email, he made it clear that the post is no wining and dining... "...It is a pity that I cannot contribute by writing, due to my very heavy and also hectic schedule. Recently, I have been going with DG Jones to all his DG visits and this is very tiring. Imagine that we have to do it day after day and sometimes both in the afternoon and also in the evening and very soon it all becomes a burden rather than a pleasure. Nevertheless, since I do not know many Rotarians in the other clubs, this has given me a very good opportunity to meet and know more Rotarians. Well, we have done most of them and there are about 5 clubs left, but then we will be flying to Beijing and then Shanghai to meet with the Chinese officials and also to do the visit to the Rotary Club of Shanghai..." Earlier I invited Alex to run a personl column in Kingspark News in his capacity as Governor-Elect. He told me he didn't want to commit himself to such responsibility, and neverthless he would write when time permits. I certainly think Kingspark News would serve as the most formidable channel to spread one's ideal, be it Rotary or otherwise. Well he confessed that he didn't want to be the focus at this stage, and was comfortable being low profile. But he would not stay that way for long. While he was at times being evasive (by my standard) when it came to matters of principle, he told me he would explain and clarify his philosophy at the 44th Rotary District Conference on November 15 where he would be officially introduced before the congregation. Wait until the District Assembly, be pledged. But of course there were things he could freely talk about. I asked his views on leadership,and I quoted an incident when PP Anwer was handling a motion on Kingspark's annual ball. I was of the view that matters of this nature can be decided by the Board members, but Anwer had it extensively discussed (and debated). Well the meeting decided not to have the ball by majority vote and was announced accordingly. In less than a week, President Anwer said the ball would go as planned. Again Alex wouldn't wish to draw any conclusions but simply said he wouldn't handle the matter that way. The annual ball is of course not something too significant. I remember on one occasion CP John was commenting on the proper use of the 3450 code. I asked if he considered this a matter of fundamental importance, and he remarked that "you'd only go to the legal framework as a last resort. But overall, it's about making compromises... If you go to the underlying nature of things, you would find that a lot of the rules are unnecessary, as many things can be done other than by following rules..." Does he want to emark on a new mission? Rotary he said, was common sense, and perhaps slightly more, which he'd call Rotalry sense. "I don't necessarily agree with all PDGs." The Rotary sense lets you see things flexibly beyond your immediate self, and it lets you think and take care of your acquaintances, and the Rotary family. He also sees the meaning of fellowship in spiritual terms. "Without fellowship, there will not be Rotary." So how does he see leadership? Alex said being DGE has made him more knowledgeable in a sense that he's able to see the need, the common good and establish a common ground of mutual understanding. He also sees in leadership an ability to motivate, and inspire others. Has he achieved this? "That's not for me to judge," he smiled. Alex was enthusiastic when talking about Rotary's new projects, notably the Cyberclub under Rotary International of which PP Herbert Lau is responsible. He was also keen on the project to build an infectious diseases control unit in a Guangzhou hospital. Mostly significantly, he said preparation was underway to establish a PDG Council. This, he believes, would ensure continuity, or at least, a better sense of continuity. Yes Alex was, and still is an introvert and I think he'd never exhibit the kind of flamboyance you'd find in many other DGs. He is equally diplomatic and in another email shortly after the interview, he revealed some of his personal thoughts... "I cannot tell which was the deciding factor, but all the things led up to one another and, taken as a whole, they all showed that I have got an immense opportunity before me to achieve something and I just took up the challenge..." In his application form for DG candidate, he wrote in his CV - a simple Rotarian. And this simple man shall lead us into the Rotary centennial year, and Kingspark into our first decade. | ||||
Who Cares What He Joined Rotary For? By Francis Wann (This
is a reprint of an article first published in Kingspark News on 23 January 2002, While waiting for Alexander Mak at the Mandarin Oriental, I passed the time going through the District Directory 2000-01. Accountants are not normally good at public relations, and the saying has it that they are usually boring and uninspiring. Would it also speak for Alex? Alex came and gave me his business card which bore the word Partner, and before I asked about his partnership with Ernst & Young, he drew my attention to the small print "Limited". Honestly I do not know the difference. Nor does any layman I suppose. "I'm not authorized to sign audit reports at Ernst & Young, and that's the only difference." As one of the longest-serving members at Kingspark, Alex learned his trade by being on the job. He joined the Inland Revenue Department as an assessor immediately after graduating from Hong Kong University in 1975 with a Bachelor of Social Science. By the time he decided to leave the Government to join the then accountancy firm of Ernst Whinney (Now Ernst & Young after merged with Arthur Young) in 1990, he was already promoted to the grade of an assessor. His experience in the Government had certainly landed him in good stead and he was Principal in 1987 and, for the first time, was also required to establish connections and generate business for the company. "But I was an introvert, and I'm not good at this." Then in 1989, a friend PP Albert Chu (who has left for New Zealand) introduced Rotary to him. He went to their meetings, and later became a member of the Rotary Club of Kwun Tong. However his role as Chairman of the Taxation Institute of Hong Kong (1992-94) meant that he could no longer effectively commit himself to Rotary, and he decided to take a break. But the break was short-lived. His passion to serve made him "rejoin the Rotary family" when IPDG John Wan decided to charter Kingspark in 1994, and Alex became its founding Vice President.To Alex, Rotary is an ideal, a mechanism, and an opportunity to serve. He recalled with much affection his days in the Rotary Club of Kwun Tong as Programme Chairman and how he worked to secure quality and interesting speakers, including very senior Government people, at their luncheon meetings. "I think this helps to put Rotary on the map, and people are more aware of our work." I asked if he had invited any Government secretaries to speak at meetings. "In those days there were no policy secretaries; they were directors. The Director of Water Supplies came. One day I saw the news on television about the first successful liver transplant in Hong Kong. I called Chinese University and talked to the professor who was directly involved in the operation and asked if he could come and speak at our meeting. He did. On another occasion, I bumped into film director Sylvia Chang one day in Tsimshatsui, and she was speaking to our members the following week…" I understand Kingspark has an excellent record in community service, and Alex was keen to remind me of their Community Service Committee on youth projects. There were also projects developed jointly with the Social Welfare Department. It is certainly how we send our Rotary message across to the next generation. It ensures continuity. I remember when he talked to IPDG John two days ago, the subject of continuity was also raised. How does he see the importance of continuity? "It's important not only for projects, but for the whole structure. This would inevitably make the impact of Rotary more felt. But I can imagine few DGs would want to commit future Governors for three years to their initial projects…" And still on the subject of continuity, Alex had been Chairman of the District Interact Committee for three years since 1997 (a post subsequently held by Rtn Dominic Ko, who was introduced by him), and he recalled how he initiated the international youth exchange program which fosters international understanding and informal gatherings of Rotary advisors. "I got the addresses of all other District Interact Chairpersons worldwide, and I sent letters to all of them, inviting them to come to Hong Kong, and I was overwhelmed by the keen response…" Indeed he is still proud of this program which has already taken root as a Rotary tradition. I could imagine lots of hard work went unnoticed, considering the problems of networking and the emailing system being not all that well established in those days. And I could understand immediately how rewarding it was. He said PDG Raymond Wong came to our regular meeting earlier that day and told him a Rotarian from Korea asked about him…Last year Alex was the District Treasurer and also the Chairman of the District Accounts Committee. I have noticed only his name on the committee. "In theory the Accounts committee works with the District Finance Committee which focused on policy matters, but in reality there's only one person responsible for preparing district accounts, and that's me." Alex was clearly aware of the confusion in terms at district level, and he was well aware of the sentiments when IPDG John restructured the Finance Committee last year. This year the District Finance Committee literally exists only on paper, as no meeting has ever been convened. I wonder, has the game of politics finally crept in? "At present, many district finance matters, policies and procedures are not well established. It may not be the right time to change them drastically now. People are still not ready for such changes. No, I would imagine not within my term of office as District Secretary(Finance) this year..." What will be his role as District Secretary (Finance), presumably only answerable to the District Governor? "I'd want to ensure a more systematic approach on district funding and disbursemements, and as we're responsible for financial policy matters within the district. I'd want a greater sense of transparency as well as accountability." How? Alex did not elaborate much. Last year, the District Conference at Convention Centre incurred a deficit in excess of HK$400,000 as a result of - in his own words - late promotion for registration, and subsequent low turn-up rate. That, I suppose, was a case of clear mismanagement. Will the organizing committee be held responsible? Was there enough monitoring of budgeting? "The good thing about accountants is that they have to accommodate differences, and understand other people's needs. A good leader is probably someone who can tolerate differences." Two days ago he asked John how he responded to accusations of dictatorship during his term as District Governor. Alex was President in 1996-97. How does he look back on himself? "I recall when I was President, I was quite dominating in the club." But nevertheless it was also in his term when Kingspark won the most district awards. Over the years, have there been moments when he seriously wanted to question his role as a Rotarian? Has he ever felt depressed with Rotary's ideal of service above self? "Yes, the District Conference issue was a clear example. It aroused a lot of unpleasantness. Sometimes you do feel a bit uneasy when you're working so hard but people around you just don't care. But when you think it over, you'd realize it's rather insignificant when compared to our Rotary ideals. Sometimes people don't see things as I do, as I've gone through the experiences in life they may not understand…" Alex is probably right, but it is something easier said than done. Sitting in front of me was the Chief Editor of Kingspark News and former English Editor of Undergrad, the official Hong Kong University Students' Union paper. It was then the era of ideology and students' movements, and massive corruption. Alex reminisced about how they demanded Peter Godber, the chief police superintendent who slipped through Hong Kong with HK$4.3m, be brought to book. "I published an article with the author impersonating as Godber's wife asking him to turn himself in. The Undergrad was a powerful student voice and a paper of good standing." How does he see Kingspark News? I have examined all other Rotary Clubs here and was amazed to find that only Kingspark has taken on this task - of producing such newsletters, not to mention weekly. That alone will make Kingspark a cut above many others, I think. But after twelve issues, Alex begins to ask - is it going in the right direction? Has it become our pride, or our liability? "The pressure is always there. It's tremendous hard work. I want to see that it serves as a communication tool and generates more interest. I would like to see more spontaneous contributions and members can share their views and feelings on all matters. I'd also like to see more international connections forged through Kingspark News." And Alex reminded me that our delegation to visit Sathon, our sister club in Bangkok, would take up this matter. What about the Rotary image in the community? Alex now serves on the organizing committee for the Millennium Enterprise Program, a function co-sponsored by Kingspark, Kowloon Northwest, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, and the Hong Kong Youth Institute. There is going to be a gala premiere of a Walt Disney production at the Convention Centre. Publicity in the local media will begin very soon, and it will be a full scale one. One with a bang, I suppose. "Yes I think this will effectively enhance our Rotary image, apart from raising money. There will probably be quite a bit of media coverage."I asked if his seniority at Kingspark has given him the privilege to lecture members. Alex laughed, "They just respect me." IPDG John lamented that "many people joined Rotary for the wrong reasons". I asked if he agreed. "Who cares what he joined Rotary for? Once you've become a Rotarian, you'll begin to understand…" Is Alex an introvert, an enigma, or a contradiction? I asked if he considered himself hard to understand. He disagreed, "Sometimes I don't really care what people think of me, if I know what I am going is right…" Then how would he describe himself? "'Benevolent autocrat' as the word is described by IPDG John?" he smiled. "But I think that I am more diplomatic (than IPDG John)" | ||||
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A New Era I am afraid technology or the lack of it has caught up with me in the past month such that I could not upload another issue of Kingspak News in between while I was plying between Danube and Rhine. The other reason was that we were somewhat short of materials for a full issue. We had contributions from President Peter and The Review editor; and that was that. I have promised myself not to moan about the phenomena, not until I can find an effective solution anyway; so I would leave it as such. I did miss you guys in Hong Kong, and I was hoping to see you last Thursday. I found out soon that President had other plans such that I would not see you collectively before the weekend when the District would hold its 44th Annual Conference. Great plans on the part of President Peter indeed, if only it worked out. During the Conference, I visited the Registration desk as often as I could and I found uncollected badges bearing our members' names every time, to my disappointment. The RIC staff told me that we had the highest registration apart from the club of which Conference Chairman is a member: RC of Channel Islands had registered every club member and a good number turned up at the Opening Session, much to the pride of Edmond Chan, and quite rightly so. In line with traditions of the District, DGE Alex, our Alex, gave his maiden speech. He spoke of vision, mission and commitment with appropriate emphases on each aspect and pledged that he would be totally dedicated and committed to Rotary in general and to making the District a stronger one in the lead up to Rotary's Centennial in particular. As he said he would give up his professional job next January in preparation for the highest office in the District, the floor reacted with spontaneous applause, admist amazement and respect no doubt. And history would probably say that Alex, through the speech, had ushered in a new era. On the other hand, I suspect that our new leader would not be concerned with whether he had indeed started a new era, particularly after he had listened to what Ms Ku said at the Conference. Let me elaborate. A leader in a service organization such as Rotary does not wield the authority that normally accompanies an office as high in other institutions in the business and commercial world. All he would have is the opportunity to serve more people, and hence the satisfaction derived therefrom. It follows that all of us who are privileged to be in the same club as his, in addition to being in the same District, owe it to ourselves to pledge our full support and to give our best to assist our new leader so that he can the better fulfil his vision and mission. | ||||
Views in any article in Kingspark News reflect those of the authors. They are not necessarily the views of the Rotary Club of Kingspark or of District 3450. You are welcome to write to Chief Editor Francis Wann or Club Webmaster John Wan on any topic, particularly in response to articles published in Kingspark News. We would publish all contributions as long as the authors identify themselves, the contents are not offensive or abusive, and would not offend common decency or common sense. You need not be a Rotarian to write to us and you have a choice to withhold your name in the published version. Where the contents make reference to statements or policies of individuals or organizations, we would try to obtain a response fro the latter for publication in the same issue if possible. | ||||
Chief
Editor : Francis Wann The Board of Directors President
: Peter Lo | ||||
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