Declaration and Disclosure of Pecuniary or Other Personal Interests
Section 5 Declaration and Disclosure of Pecuniary or Other Personal Interests
club, association, union or other organization which is connected with a matter under consideration by the IMC;
• pecuniary interests in a matter under consideration by the IMC held either by the manager, his/her family or close relatives;
• some friendships which might be so close as to warrant declaration in order to avoid situations where an objective observer might believe that a manager’s advice might have been influenced by the closeness of the association; and
• any interest likely to lead an objective observer to believe that the manager’s advice might have been motivated by personal interest rather than a duty to give impartial advice (such as acceptance of free service, entertainment, gifts or other favours).
5.4 Examples of Conflict of Interest in Schools
(a) Conflict of interest is a situation in which a school manager’s private interests interfere with the proper discharge of his/her duties in the school. Managers should put the interests of students before all other interests in the course of carrying out their duties. Conflict of interest may arise in cases where they exercise authority, influence decisions and actions, or gain access to confidential information. In a school, conflict of interest may arise in the following cases, which are by no means exhaustive:
• admission of students;
• staff appointment and promotion;
• complaints and disciplinary actions against staff and students;
• selection of textbooks, sale of exercise books and other school accessories;
• supply of school uniforms;
• provision of school bus service;
• approval of tuckshop operations;
• provision of catering service e.g. lunch boxes; and
• purchase of furniture and equipment e.g. award of tenders.
(b) The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has produced a guidebook The Integrity Management for Schools – A Practical Guidebook for School Staff which explains corruption loopholes through case studies and recommends to school management the principles of formulating corruption prevention measures. The contents cover acceptance of advantages and donations, conflict of interest, tendering and procurement, and accounts management. The guidebook is available on the ICAC homepage (http://www.icac.org.hk/eng/0/1/10/17/14811.html).
5.5 A Two-pronged Approach to Declaration of Conflict of Interest
(a) On taking up office, school managers should declare in writing to the IMC any pecuniary or other personal interests that may conflict with their managerial duties. A two-pronged approach shall be adopted :
• managers declare any conflict of interest to the IMC, which will set up a register for recording the declared interests of individual managers; and
• managers disclose any conflict of interest during the discussion of specific agenda items at the meetings of IMCs.
Section 5 Declaration and Disclosure of Pecuniary or Other Personal Interests
(b) The sample declaration form is at Appendix III. IMCs are encouraged to modify the form to suit their needs. Having made a declaration to the IMC, managers should take it upon themselves to update any information whenever necessary, although they are required to declare to the IMC at least once in every 12 months any conflict of interest. If managers are in doubt as to whether a declaration is warranted, they may seek the advice of the supervisor of the IMC.
(c) When a known direct pecuniary interest exists, the supervisor of the IMC may withhold circulation of relevant papers to the managers concerned. Where a manager is in direct receipt of a paper for discussion that he/she knows presents a direct conflict of interest, he/she should immediately inform the secretary and return the paper.
5.6 Register of Interests
(a) The IMC shall maintain a register of managers’ declared financial and personal conflict of interest, which should be available for inspection by any inspector of schools at any reasonable time. It may also consider making available the register for inspection by the interested stakeholders like teachers, parents and alumni of the school upon request.
(b) The IMC shall also maintain a register of all disclosures relating to the matters that are considered or are to be considered at a meeting of the IMC, which shall be available for public inspection at any reasonable time.
(c) There should be proper procedures for the safe custody of the declaration forms, which should only be kept by a designated member or the supervisor of the IMC. The IMC may make reference to the Code of Practice on Human Resource Management published by the Office of Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data in determining the duration of retention of the register. The personal data should not be kept longer than is necessary for the fulfillment of the purposes for which the data are to be used.
(d) Any disclosure of conflict of interest made during a meeting has to be recorded in the minutes and the register must be updated accordingly.
(e) The register and meeting minutes on declaration of conflict of interest are under the protection of the Data Protection Principles of the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance.
(a) It is imperative that school managers work only for the benefits of students and that the interests of the school should always be above theirs. [Section 5.4]
(b) A manager has to observe the requirements in relation to declaration and disclosure of interests stipulated in the Education Ordinance. [Section 5.1 & 5.2]
The procedures for IMC meetings have to be laid down in the IMC constitution. Each IMC may set its own procedures for how IMC meetings will be conducted and the decisions reached. The items listed below serve as a reference for IMCs to draw up meeting procedures that suit individual needs.
6.1 Number of Meetings
For the IMC to function effectively, there have to be regular meetings to discuss and decide on school matters. While the number of meeting has been specified in the IMC constitution, the IMC may hold more meetings to meet the needs of the school.
6.2 Special Meetings
At any time during an emergency, the supervisor may convene an extraordinary meeting at short notice. A meeting may also be held at the request of a certain number of managers as specified in the IMC constitution. This number is at the discretion of the IMC. All members should be notified of the date, time, place and purpose of such special meetings.
6.3 Supervisor
(a) The supervisor of the IMC shall be one of the registered managers of the school. However, according to the Education Ordinance, the principal or a teacher of the school shall not be the supervisor or act as the supervisor. The procedures for the election or nomination of the supervisor, and for resignation, re-election or re-nomination when a vacancy arises, should be made known to each manager and properly documented.
(b) The supervisor of the IMC will ensure that the meeting is conducted in accordance with the prescribed procedures, and that