All charity dollars count, no matter what the motivation
Hong Kong is a caring society. Making charitable contributions and helping the needy is in keeping with our social values. Donations come not only from individuals, but also from big companies and tycoons, through various charity foundations they have set up.
These foundations support education efforts, medical services and the operation of some non-profit social and welfare organisations, as well as the city's cultural development. They provide direct and indirect financial support for many of the underprivileged in society.
The Community Care Fund, established by the government last year, operates under the same guiding principles. Its main objective is to provide assistance to people with financial difficulties, especially those who fall outside the social safety net. It provides a platform for tycoons and corporations to contribute, and brings together various community efforts to help the needy and foster a caring culture in society.
Many expect the fund to help ease the growing tension arising from the rapidly widening wealth gap and the anti-rich sentiment. Hence, they say, tycoons might donate to the fund for political reasons.
However, what motivates them to donate is not important and should not concern us; we can never be sure what the reasons are, anyway. The outcome is the most important thing, and, the fact is, these contributions benefit society. At the end of the day, we should support the involvement of the tycoons and corporations because the end results help those in need.
Most recently, some have criticised tycoon Li Ka-shing's 'Love Ideas, Love Hong Kong' philanthropic campaign, saying it was badly executed by allowing the public to vote online for projects to receive funds. They said the selection method favoured quantity over quality, and feared that some applicants might have manipulated the outcome by planting votes. They said the applications should have been vetted by professionals in the social welfare sector and judged on their merits. Some even dismissed the campaign as a marketing stunt to help promote a socially responsible image for Li and his companies.