The administrator of the fire-hit Wang Fuk Court has said it is studying the Lands Tribunal’s judgment after the court denied its bid to extend the statutory deadline for an owners’ meeting. Wang Fuk Court on April 22, 2026. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Replying to media enquiries, Hop On Management, the government-appointed administrator of the housing estate, also said on Wednesday that it would continue to verify signatures in the petition from homeowners and would hold a meeting as requested.
Just a day earlier, the Lands Tribunal denied Hop On’s application to postpone the deadline for convening and holding an owners’ meeting, as required by the Buildings Management Ordinance (BMO), after the company received the homeowners’ petition. Hop On also said on Wednesday that it made the application due to the extensive preparations for the meeting and that it hoped all homeowners would have a “fair opportunity” to participate in the meeting.
Hop On added that it appreciated the tribunal’s acknowledgement of the administrator’s efforts in contacting homeowners.
In his Tuesday judgment, Judge Gary Lam, presiding officer of the Lands Tribunal, said that the firm’s difficulty in contacting owners was “not insurmountable” as it had managed to collect addresses, phone numbers and email addresses of 1,601 owners out of 1,984 units at the Tai Po housing estate. Hectar Pun (left), counsel for government-appointed administrator Hop On Management, leaves the Lands Tribunal on June 1, 2026. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. He also said it was “plain and obvious” that the BMO does not give the tribunal jurisdiction to extend the statutory deadline for holding owners’ meetings.
Replying to press enquiries, the Home Affairs Department (HAD) said that Lam’s ruling involved the interpretation of the BMO and that the government would study the judgment.
The department also noted that the tribunal gave Hop On and the HAD “credit” for their efforts in issuing notices and convening the meeting, given the exceptional circumstances.
On April 29, Hop On, a subsidiary of real estate giant Chinachem Group, received a petition with 247 handwritten signatures asking the firm to meet with flat owners to discuss long-term resettlement and related financial matters.
The total number of signatures supporting the petition exceeded the 5 per cent threshold needed to convene a meeting stipulated by the BMO.
According to the ordinance, the management committee should issue notice of the meeting within 14 days and hold the general meeting with owners within 45 days.