The scandal in Hong Kong. Millions of bribes for renovations and dark connections with the mafia

The Independent Anti-Corruption Commission (ICAC) in Hong Kong has arrested 21 people in connection with rigging tenders for housing estate renovations worth millions of dollars, local media reported on Friday. The action is part of the fight against corruption in the construction sector, intensified after the tragic fire in November last year.

The maintenance of buildings is closely related to the public interest. ICAC has always attached great importance to (fighting – PAP) corruption in the field of building maintenance, the commission said in a statement, referring to the arrests carried out last week.

Those arrested, aged 30 to 81, included realtors, design consultants, contractors and members of the management boards of housing communities. According to ICAC, some of these people had links with local criminal groups, the so-called triads.

The investigation concerns two housing estates in the Kwun Tong district. In the first case, the contractor allegedly paid bribes to consultants and community board members to secure a renovation contract worth approximately HK$33 million (approximately USD 4.2 million).. In the second case, concerning a housing estate at the stage of preparation for renovation, intermediaries were to illegally collect voting proxies from apartment owners. The goal was to take control of the management and ensure victory in future tenders.

The intensified activities of the services are a reaction to the tragedy of November 26 last year. A fire in high-rise buildings in the Wang Fuk Court complex killed at least 161 people. The investigation showed that the fire spread rapidly due to the use of cheap, substandard materials, which was the result of rigged tenders. A commission was established to investigate the situation in the construction industry, and 11 people had already been charged in the case of the most tragic fire in the metropolis in decades. The arrests reported by ICAC on Friday are unrelated to this case.

Krzysztof Pawliszak (PAP)

krp/ akl/