Hong Kong Audit Commission head brushes off accusations body targeted Chinese University, says it scrutinises all use of public money

Nelson Lam Chi-yuen, the director of Hong Kong's Audit Commission, has dismissed allegations that the Chinese University was specifically targeted in its most recent investigation. He stated that the commission scrutinises the utilisation of all public funds, irrespective of the institution in question. He also indicated that the commission may extend its investigations to other tertiary education institutions in the future. The commission's mandate is to conduct value-for-money reviews of all organisations that receive public funding.

In response to accusations that the auditor had singled out Chinese University for scrutiny in its latest auditing exercise, Lam stated that the auditor had conducted checks on other tertiary education institutions. He added that comprehensive audits would examine every aspect of legal compliance, including adherence to the national security law. The audit report, released this week, was the latest development in a tumultuous year for the publicly funded university, coming just weeks after the legislature passed a contentious bill reforming its governing council.

The report highlighted that the university had yet to incorporate national security safeguards in its tender documents, contracts and guidelines. It urged the institution to strengthen its guidance and regulations for facilities operated by external contractors. The university has accepted the report's findings and agreed to implement improvement measures. The report also found that the university's bookstore was selling products that fell outside those stipulated in current agreements, and that all of the catering outlets had failed to obtain a food business licence.