Wang Fuk residents blocked from meetings, inquiry told

Survivors of the Wang Fuk Court fire on Monday told a hearing about the deadly blaze that residents of the estate were often barred from attending meetings where important decisions were made. Yip Ka-kui, from Wang Tai House, said he recalled seeing someone drop a bunch of ballots into the voting boxes as property management staff were about to count the votes during a meeting. Owners were prevented from attending such meetings at which they would have had to vote, he added. Yip also testified that he and other Wang Fuk Court homeowners had lodged a complaint with the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) over issues in the renovation contract. The resident said he was later informed that the URA had stated the matter was not under the body's purview, suggesting they contact the construction consultant instead. The independent committee probing last year's inferno also heard from fellow resident Law Tak-pui, who said he was concerned about the fire safety system's shutdown following a notification and reported it to the management office. But he said it was not specified how long the shutdown would last, which ended up being inactive for half a year. The morning session of the hearing was briefly interrupted when the fire alarm went off at around 11.30am, prompting all attendees to evacuate City Gallery. The venue reopened close to noon and attendees were allowed to enter the building again. Edited by Tony Sabine