Residents of Tai Po blaze building misled over renovation project, inquiry told

Residents of a housing complex destroyed in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest fires were misled into picking a convicted contractor for the estate’s renovation project amid “widespread” bid-rigging and other corruption in the construction industry, a public hearing has been told.The judge-led independent committee also heard on Friday that an engineering consultant allegedly accepted a monthly stipend to “rubber stamp” tender evaluation reports, including one recommending Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po pick the most expensive option offered by a contractor .In his opening speech on the second day of a series of evidential hearings, the committee’s leading senior counsel, Victor Dawes, highlighted what appeared to be suspicious connections between the contractor and five of its competitors in the tendering process, suggesting they could have “some forms of relationship” under the table.Dawes said various law enforcement agencies shared the view that bid-rigging and other anticompetitive practices were rife in the city, with police noting that people with triad backgrounds had set up engineering and construction firms hoping to monopolise the building renovation business.“The information received from law enforcement is consistent, that such practice is widespread and common in the market,” he said.All eight buildings had been under renovation and covered with bamboo scaffolding and mesh netting since the summer of 2024. Photo: Dickson LeeThe inferno that tore through seven of Wang Fuk Court’s eight blocks in November last year was the deadliest in Hong Kong since 1948, killing 168 people and leaving nearly 5,000 homeless.