'Incompetency, Arrogance Behind MTR Station Flaws'

A lawyer for the government has accused the MTR Corporation of incompetency and a construction firm of corporate arrogance, as final submissions are made to an inquiry looking into a safety scare at Hung Hom MTR Station.

Senior Counsel Richard Khaw said on Monday that the railway company ought to have provided “the skills and care reasonably expected of a competent project manager”, but had “disappointingly” failed to deliver.

Khaw went on to say that it was startling that construction firm Leighton has been reluctant to accept its deficiencies even when faced with clear and concrete evidence of its failure in supervision, inspection and record-keeping.

He said Leighton’s belief that it has done nothing wrong and can shift the burden to other parties has demonstrated its complete lack of a sense of responsibility, and “a considerable degree of corporate arrogance”.

The barrister noted that both the MTR Corporation and Leighton had failed to investigate the reason for reinforcement bars at station platforms being cut short, and had failed to introduce remedial measures despite knowing this had happened.

Khaw added that the government – the corporation's majority shareholder – will review its own monitoring role and make improvements.

The MTR’s lawyer Philip Boulding, meanwhile, said expert evidence has shown there are no safety issues at the station.

He noted that parts of two platforms are currently being opened up to check the work done, but said only a few defective connections have been found so far.

The Queen’s Counsel said the MTR has a proven track record going back more than two decades in successful project management and development.

Boulding also criticised the subcontractor who first revealed the bar-cutting at the station, saying Jason Poon wasn't a credible witness and it is very difficult to believe anything he says.

For its part, Leighton rejected the claim that it has been arrogant. The company's lawyer, Senior Counsel Paul Shieh, said the firm could well be accused of not putting enough resources into investigating the bar-cutting incidents at the time.

But he also said people should put things into perspective, and look at the issue in a “humane, sympathetic and realistic way”.

Shieh said the claims of shoddy work originally appeared to be nonsense, coming out of the blue from a disgruntled subcontractor asking for money.

Other parties, including Poon's company China Technology, were yet to make their final submissions.