David Akers-Jones
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Sir David Akers-Jones, KBE, CMG, GBM, JP (鍾逸傑爵士, born April 14, 1927) was the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong from 1985 to 1987.
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[edit] Biography
He first arrived in Hong Kong as a soldier in January 1945 and began his career in the Colonial Hong Kong Government in the summer of 1957.
During his long career, Akers-Jones served in many important posts in the Government of Hong Kong, including Principal Assistant Colonial Secretary (首席助理輔政司), Secretary for the New Territories (新界政務司), which was later retitled as "The Secretary for City and New Territories Administration". Passionately committed to communities, he was instrumental in turning small villages into "new towns" in the New Territories teeming with factories, and apartment blocks to resettle slum-dwellers on the hillsides of Hong Kong Island.[1]
He was also Secretary for Home Affairs (政務司) and Chief Secretary.
After the sudden death of Sir Edward Youde, Akers-Jones became Acting Governor of Hong Kong from December 1986 to April 1987. After retiring from the post of Chief Secretary in 1987, he became Special Assistant to the Governor Lord Wilson of Tillyorn for six months. He later became the Chairman of the Hong Kong Housing Authority from 1987 to 1992.
In the years leading up to the transfer of sovereignty from the UK to the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1997, Akers-Jones was appointed as an Advisor on Hong Kong Issues (港事顧問) to the Government of the PRC from 1993 to 1997. This appointment caused considerable dismay among many of the British residents of Hong Kong, who saw Akers-Jones' acceptance of the appointment as self-serving and tantamount to the behaviour of a turn-coat. Never a popular figure, his reputation in certain quarters sank further[citation needed].
Sir David Akers-Jones is now retired and lives quietly in Hong Kong. After his retirement, Akers-Jones and his wife bought the dilapidated secluded villa, "Dragon View" in Sham Tseng for $1.5 million. The couple renovated it and worked extensively on the garden. They were served with a compulsory purchase order on October 19, 2000 when it was decided to go ahead with a road widening project.[2] He is thought to have obtained at least $30 million in compensation.[3]
[edit] Discovery Bay controversy
In 2005, Akers-Jones briefly emerged from retirement to defend, before Hong Kong's Legislative Council, his role in zoning the Discovery Bay resort project on Lantau in the 1970s. Developers were allowed to build there with the stipulation that it would become a resort, but most of the units were later converted into luxury housing. Akers-Jones was involved in the original zoning decision as the then Secretary for the New Territories[4][5] and some believed that it constituted a sweetheart deal for the developer[citation needed]. With the new Hong Kong Disneyland having opened nearby and property prices having skyrocketed as a result, suspicions about the fact that the original zoning plan was never enforced have again come to the fore. He criticised the decision to call on an elderly man to testify on the matter, which happened some 30 years earlier. However, he revealed that colonial officials had abruptly changed the zoning of the Discovery Bay project, and gave it to new developers because they feared it would fall into the hands of the former Soviet Union.[4]
[edit] Political views
He has criticised Hong Kong's post-colonial government for continuing with the policy of maintaining high property prices, the lack of urban planning, and frequently ill-concieved plans to reclaim land in Victoria Harbour.[1]
In the light of this, it is, perhaps, ironic that he is credited with the introduction of the "small house policy" which has transformed villages in the New Territories. Originally conceived as a means of preventing the decay and death of rural communities, this policy allows the sons of indigenous villagers to apply to the Hong Kong Government for a plot of land upon which to build a "small house". No matter how noble the original conception, the policy has fallen into disrepute, having become a by-word for corruption and sharp practice. Insofar as the policy also permits houses to be built in a haphazard manner and with no apparent reference to planning regulations, it has allowed the entire New Territories to become blighted by mediocre, unappealing edifices, optimistically (and inaccurately) termed "Spanish-style villas".
Akers-Jones has advocated converting the current Election Committee into a committee which would nominate suitable candidates for the post of chief executive for election by the public. He further believes in preserving functional constituencies as part of electoral reform, and believes that the constituencies should be turned into an upper house in a bicameral legislature[6] instead of abolishing them.[1]
[edit] Memoirs
Akers-Jones has recently published a volume of reminiscences, entitled "Feeling the Stones" and pens the occasional letter to the South China Morning Post. He is also an infrequent columnist there and at The Standard. His writings display a dryness and lack of humour which many would say accurately reflect his character[citation needed].
On February 24, 2007, Sir David Akers-Jones attended the BA Paper 2006 undergraduate business competition on building a sustainable healthcare model for Hong Kong in the capacity of Guest of Honour.
[edit] Benevolent work
Akers-Jones is involved with, whether in the capacity of chairman, president, vice-president or otherwise, the Hong Kong Girl Guides Association, the local chapter of Outward Bound, the Hong Kong Football Association, World Wildlife Fund Hong Kong, the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation and Operation Smile China[1]
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c d Smith, Patrick L.. "In Hong Kong, a man who stayed on for love", International Herald Tribune, March 19, 2007. Retrieved on March 21, 2007.
- ^ Luk, Helen. "Road to tears for ex-colonial chief", Hong Kong Standard, November 06, 2000. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
- ^ Cheung, Jimmy. "Sir David's home on road to ruin", Hong Kong Standard, June 13, 1997. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
- ^ a b Murphy, Colum. "Spy fear led to Disco Bay", Hong Kong Standard, January 13, 2005. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
- ^ Ng, Michael. "Disco Bay fiasco won't be repeated", Hong Kong Standard, May 19, 2005. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
- ^ Wong, Albert (July 31, 2006). Election Committee key to suffrage plan. Hong Kong Standard. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
[edit] References
- Sir David Akers-Jones (2004). Feeling the Stones: Reminiscences by David Akers-Jones. Hong Kong University Press. ISBN 962-209-655-7.
- AKERS-JONES, Sir David International Who's Who. accessed September 3, 2006.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by: Sir Charles Philip Haddon-Cave |
Chief Secretary of Hong Kong 1985-1987 |
Succeeded by: Sir David Robert Ford |
| Preceded by: Sir Edward Youde |
Governor of Hong Kong (Acting) 1986-1987 |
Followed by: Lord Wilson of Tillyorn |
| Preceded by: Sir Edward Youde |
President of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (Acting) 1986-1987 |
Followed by: Lord Wilson of Tillyorn |
Categories: Articles with unsourced statements since March 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Alumni of the University of Kent | British Hongkongers | Chief Secretaries of Hong Kong | Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire | Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George | 1927 births | Living people
