教育撥款雖通過 泛民態度須反省

<轉載自2017年7月20日 明報 社評>

立法會財務委員會舉行今個立法年度最後一次會議，經過8小時審議，通過36億元教育新資源撥款，以及3間醫院的擴建重建撥款等申請。會議期間，部分泛民議員不斷重複問題，浪費討論時間，雖然最終未有將教育和醫院撥款項目「拖死」，然而仍有多項民生議題未能通過，令人遺憾。泛民對4名立法會議員喪失議席感到不滿，屬情理之中，但不應以民生事務作為政治鬥爭武器，今次財委會未出現最惡劣情况，不代表泛民做法可取。泛民應趁暑假休會好好冷靜一下，反思投身議會所為何事。

多項民生撥款受阻 蹉跎歲月市民遭殃

上周高院就宣誓案判決後，泛民內部即有聲音主張「開戰」，在財委會全面拉布，「拖死」餘下18個撥款項目。有議員更聲言，民主派要有「博弈策略」，衡量教育新資源撥款對民主派還是政府更重要，要脅之意不言而喻。政府為了爭取教育新資源等迫切民生項目能及時過關，臨時調動議程，將18個項目減至8個，絕大部分都沒有爭議，希望泛民議員實事求是。可是會議前夕泛民僅承諾會「審議」教育新資源，對會否開綠燈不置可否，令教育界憂心忡忡，可幸最終財委會及時通過教育撥款，讓不少校長教師鬆一口氣。會議結束前，財委會還意外地趕及通過3間醫院擴建及重建撥款等4項申請。

一些泛民人士也許認為，讓教育撥款和醫院擴建項目過關，足以堵住「犧牲民生罔顧大局」的批評，然而現實是餘下多個涉及民生的項目，包括東涌新市鎮擴展工程、中九龍幹線及公務員薪酬調整等，都未能及時通過，要到10月立法會復會後再處理。蹉跎歲月，受影響的是一般市民。中九龍幹線等項目撥款延誤，意味工程費有可能上漲；公務員薪酬調整未能及時通過，部分與公務員薪酬掛鈎的「打工仔」，薪酬亦未必能夠追加。

過去泛民議員常強調，他們的角色是監察政府、為市民把關，可是昨天部分泛民議員的表現，不禁令人質疑這些都是說辭，實際是假「議事」之名行政治操作之實，但求阻撓施政，不分好歹，不理曲直。會議上，多名泛民議員認為政府資助自資學位方案有缺失，不滿政府的3萬元資助不包括報讀八大院校自資課程和副學士學位的人，要求政府修改方案。議員與政府有不同意見，當然平常不過，然而同類提問超過40次，未免令人質疑泛民議員不過是施展「拖字訣」，浪費時間，並非急民之所急。

有泛民議員聲言，行政長官林鄭月娥不修改方案，就是「不聽人意見」、「假諮詢」、「玩政治」、「等同梁振英2.0」，邏輯令人吃驚。眾所周知，教育新資源方案是當局與教協、八大院校、中小學代表等教育界持份者磋商出來，就連部分泛民人士也承認，方案包含了他們多年來的訴求，若說這是「假諮詢」，明顯與事實不符。如果泛民認為政府不肯百分百順從他們的要求，就等於「不聽人意見」和「假諮詢」，這種唯我獨尊的態度實在難以接受，叫人懷疑到底是誰在「玩政治」和「扣帽子」。

泛民應檢討議事策略 輕言拉布開戰不足取

政府表示資助計劃未將八大院校自資課程包羅其中，是因為八大已獲得政府很多資助，反觀政府對自資院校並沒有經常資助，所以希望能夠平衡一下，至於副學士問題，則希望留待稍後全面檢討，八大院校主席對資助方案並沒有異議。有關論據未必人人滿意，但起碼合情合理，決策過程也未見不合理之處。會議尾聲民主派提出多項無約束力動議，包括要求半年內提出全面政策，研究將3萬元資助擴展至八大院校自資課程及副學士課程，以及提高中小學班師比（即每班可獲常額教師人數比例），政府均表示會考慮，擺出有商有量姿態。泛民為了市民福祉，應將民生問題與政治問題切割，抱着理性態度議事論事，不應將民生事務政治化。

過去數年，拉布成為了立法會常態，濫用情况頻生。一些國家議會容許拉布，主要是希望保證少數派意見獲得尊重，以拉布手段阻撓惡法通過，也許可以得到市民體諒，可是濫用拉布騎劫民生，則是另一回事。泛民要向中央和特區政府表達不滿，可以有很多方法，然而不應捨本逐末，忘記加入議會為民請命的初衷，將民生事務當成政治博弈籌碼。今次泛民未有「拉死」教育撥款和醫院擴建項目，絕對說不上是「大恩大德」，充其量只能說是留下一線餘地，未有徹底關上與政府溝通合作之門。泛民應趁着休會時間檢討議事策略；輕言拉布甚至「全面開戰」，遭殃的只會是普羅市民。

Pan-democrats must reflect on what they have done

AFTER eight hours' deliberation, the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council has approved the requests for $3.6 billion funding for new education resources as well as the expansion and renewal plans for three hospitals in the last meeting of this legislative year.

Since the High Court handed down a ruling on the oaths taken by several lawmakers, there has been talk of "war-waging" within the pan-democratic camp and a full-scale filibustering campaign in the Finance Committee with the aim of scuppering the 18 remaining funding requests pending approval. Some lawmakers have, in a thinly-veiled threat, even claimed that the pan-democratic camp must employ a strategy based on the "game theory" and determine whether the new resources for education are more important to the pan-democrats or the government. In a bid to make sure that items related to bread-and-butter issues — including new resources for education — would be approved in time, the government reshuffled the agenda and reduced the number of items from 18 to 8, the large majority of which were not controversial at all in the hope that pan-democratic lawmakers would be practical. However, in a move that deeply worried the education sector, the pan-democrats only promised prior to the meeting to "deliberate" on the funding request but failed to say anything about whether they would give the greenlight to it. Fortunately, the Finance Committee approved the funding request for education in time, and many headmasters and teachers were relieved. To everyone's surprise, the Finance Committee even managed to approve four funding requests concerning the expansion and renewal plans for three hospitals before the meeting ended.

Some pan-democrats might think that, by approving the funding requests for education and the hospital expansion plans, they can stave off criticisms of "sacrificing the livelihood of people and paying no regard to society's overall interests". But the fact is that those remaining items involving bread-and-butter issues, including the expansion project of the Tung Chung new town, the Central Kowloon Route and pay revisions of the civil service, have not been approved in time and will not be handled until the Legislative Council reconvenes in October. It is ordinary citizens who are affected when such issues hang in the balance. The delays in funding for projects like the Central Kowloon Route mean that construction costs could rise. The failure to pass the pay revision plan for the civil service means that some working people whose salaries are pegged to those of the civil service will not enjoy pay rises accordingly.

Pan-democratic lawmakers have long argued that they play a role in monitoring the government on the behalf of the people. However, judging from what some pan-democratic did yesterday, it is doubtful whether they really mean what they say or they are just carrying out political operations in the name of "deliberation". Do they only want to hinder the government and pay no regard to what is right and what is wrong? During the meeting, many pan-democratic lawmakers said that there were flaws with the government's subsidy plan for self-financed degree programmes. Unhappy at the arrangement that the government's $30,000 subsidy will not benefit those who enrol in self-financed courses or associate degree programmes in the eight tertiary institutions, they demanded that the government amend the plan. It is very natural that lawmakers have different views from the government. However, the fact that the same kind of questions were asked more than 40 times yesterday makes one doubtful that the pan-democrats were just employing delaying tactics to waste time rather than concern themselves with what the public needed most.

That the pan-democrats did not scupper the funding requests for education and the hospital expansion plans must not be taken as an act of mercy. It was at best an attempt to leave some room for manoeuvre and prevent a complete breakdown of communication with the government. The pan-democrats should discuss their strategies during the summer break. Engaging in a filibuster or launching "an all-out war" without good reasons will only harm ordinary people.

教育撥款雖通過 泛民態度須反省

立法會財務委員會舉行今個立法年度最後一次會議，經過8小時審議，通過36億元教育新資源撥款，以及3間醫院的擴建重建撥款等申請。

上周高院就宣誓案判決後，泛民內部即有聲音主張「開戰」，在財委會全面拉布，「拖死」餘下18個撥款項目。有議員更聲言，民主派要有「博弈策略」，衡量教育新資源撥款對民主派還是政府更重要，要脅之意不言而喻。政府為了爭取教育新資源等迫切民生項目能及時過關，臨時調動議程，將18個項目減至8個，絕大部分都沒有爭議，希望泛民議員實事求是。可是會議前夕泛民僅承諾會「審議」教育新資源，對會否開綠燈不置可否，令教育界憂心忡忡，可幸最終財委會及時通過教育撥款，讓不少校長教師鬆一口氣。會議結束前，財委會還意外地趕及通過3間醫院擴建及重建撥款等4項申請。

一些泛民人士也許認為，讓教育撥款和醫院擴建項目過關，足以堵住「犧牲民生罔顧大局」的批評，然而現實是餘下多個涉及民生的項目，包括東涌新市鎮擴展工程、中九龍幹線及公務員薪酬調整等，都未能及時通過，要到10月立法會復會後再處理。蹉跎歲月，受影響的是一般市民。中九龍幹線等項目撥款延誤，意味工程費有可能上漲；公務員薪酬調整未能及時通過，部分與公務員薪酬掛鈎的「打工仔」，薪酬亦未必能夠追加。

過去泛民議員常強調，他們的角色是監察政府、為市民把關，可是昨天部分泛民議員的表現，不禁令人質疑這些都是說辭，實際是假「議事」之名行政治操作之實，但求阻撓施政，不分好歹，不理曲直。會議上，多名泛民議員認為政府資助自資學位方案有缺失，不滿政府的3萬元資助不包括報讀八大院校自資課程和副學士學位的人，要求政府修改方案。議員與政府有不同意見，當然平常不過，然而同類提問超過40次，未免令人質疑泛民議員不過是施展「拖字訣」，浪費時間，並非急民之所急。

今次泛民未有「拉死」教育撥款和醫院擴建項目，絕對說不上是「大恩大德」，充其量只能說是留下一線餘地，未有徹底關上與政府溝通合作之門。泛民應趁着休會時間檢討議事策略；輕言拉布甚至「全面開戰」，遭殃的只會是普羅市民。