Govt Urged To Pull Out Of Fo Tan Quarantine Estate

Pro-establishment lawmakers have urged the government to vacate the Chun Yeung quarantine estate in Fo Tan as the coronavirus situation eases, saying officials should hand over the keys as soon as possible to the residents waiting to move into the new flats there.

The government started using the newly-constructed public housing estate as a major quarantine centre in February, forcing the thousands of families who were all set to move in to delay their plans.

When asked by lawmakers Yan Chan and Vincent Cheng in Legco when the government will free up the estate, Health Secretary Sophia Chan said there are still people in quarantine there after returning from high-risk places such as Pakistan and India.

The secretary said the government will look at pulling out when more quarantine facilities become ready for use.

But Cheng said further delays would affect the families waiting to move into the estate, many of whom had approached him for help.

With 3,000 units there, he estimated that about 10,000 people were affected in various ways because of the delay.

"Many of the people who are waiting for the Chun Yeung Estate [have been] waiting for a very long time, and they cannot plan anything yet. Some of them are living in sub-divided flats and they really hope that they can go to the Chun Yeung Estate as soon as possible," Cheng said.

Cheng also told RTHK's Jimmy Choi that the lack of uncertainty could also affect children who are to go to schools close to the estate.