Shanghai, Apr. 18. Provisional Council will find itself at a eross roads when it considers the legality of the two groups of Chinese ratepayers in the city, now fighting in the open for the four seats allotted to the Chinese ratepayers in the Settlement.
Both groups have notified the Shanghai Municipal Council of their nominations, While the Chungking group sent in the names of its four councillors, the Nanking group sent a letter to the Council yester-charge of the Association's affairs, seriously hampering its functioning. For this reason this Ministry proclaimed a meeting of the Ratepayers for the year 1941 on April 14.
"For several years there has been assembly of the Chinese Ratepayers, and this is. suMeient proof, that the directors paid not the slight= cet attention to ils welfare. This year, on April 14 the Association's meotini: was held at the Chamber of Com= mere, 'The total qualified members of the Ratepayers Association amounted (o 81 persons, five of whom having passed away, whose names were Mr. C. Y, Liu, Mr. S. 8. Soong, Mr, K, C. Koo, Mr. ¥. C, King, and Mr, 8. W. Tsai.' One of the members, Mr, C, li. King, had publicly pr claimed his resignation by publish Ing{ a notice to that effect in the local press, So that at present there are only 75 members eft, "Moreover, among this lot, 19 have left for Hongkong and Chungking, and them had even been gone for several years, From a practical standpoint they cannot represent the Chinese ratepayers any more; they have lost the qualification {0 look after the interests and welfare of this group, 'From these 75 members, if we deduct the above 19 absentees, those who really represent the ratepayers, and are still residing within Shanghai, hence capable of looking after the ratepayers' Interests, are 56 in num~ ber. Of these 38 members attended the meetings, and they amount (o 9 majority out of the 58 members, Even day alleging that the Chungking The Nanking group has sent in the yines of Chinese councillors and committeeman for the 3041-1042 period. Tt was said that they were Tegally elected by the newly formed Chinese Ratepayers Association. The mes were sent to the Council for Nporuisal;" it was said en the new asrociation's Ielter to the Council. The letter further expressed the hope that the Council would act "in ace cordance with the general wishes of this Association and oblige" The! Chinese press in sympathy with Chungking expressed strong opposition to Nanking's arrangement, recognizing the four Chinese councillors Selected by pro-Chungking ratepayers in Hongkong as those legally elected to represent Chinese ratepayers here.
It will be recalled that the Chungking "group's letter was sent from Hongkong by Me. Wang Hsiao-Lai and Mr. Hsu Chi-ching, chairman and vice chairman respectively of the Chinese Ratepayers Association in Hongkong Road which was visited by the Japanese yesterday. The Nanking group slated that they could not re-Present Chinese ratepayers here. It Was stated in the Nanking group's Ietier to the Council that since Mz. Wang had been absent from the city for over three years "he is not even citizen of Shanghai "Remote Control"
"Moreover, Chinese Councillors are elected at representatives' conferences group's procedure was illegal.
"Furthermore, Wang and Hsu sug gest Messrs. IT. Yuan, Yulin Hsi William Gockson and Chen Ting-reh fas councillors for the Messrs. Gockson and Chen have both left Shanghai for Hongkong. They are unable even to attend the meeting. How can they represent the interest of the ratepayers in the International Settlement? The office of the councitiors is extremely important. It Is closely associated with the welfare of the two millions of ratepayers within the Settlement. It is not permissible for anyone to hold Int by remote control. If two coun-chlors are allowed to hold ofice in this manner, it means half of the power thus "delegated to the rate-avers is lost."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.