The independent committee probing the circumstances surrounding and leading to Hong Kong’s worst fire in decades has slated its first open hearing for March 19 at the City Gallery in Central, the panel’s chair David Lok Kai-hong said on Thursday.

Subsequent hearings will be held between 10 am and 1 pm, and between 2:15 pm and 4:30 pm, on weekdays, and those seeking to participate or summon witnesses must file a written request with the committee by Feb 12; if approved, witness statements and related documents must be submitted by Feb 23.

The announcement came as the panel convened for the first time to outline the hearing plan and the course for the investigation.

Victor Dawes, leading counsel for the independent committee, told Thursday’s meeting that the inquiry has already gathered “highly significant, crucial” evidence that offers initial leads into the cause of the fatal November blaze at Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court residential complex, which claimed 168 lives.

Dawes added that the inquiry has so far uncovered a series of systemic flaws in the evidence — findings he described as “unacceptable” and which “cannot be overlooked”.

ALSO READ: Tai Po fire: How much more can HK do?

Thursday’s session drew representatives from major government and statutory bodies — including the Department of Justice, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, the Hong Kong Competition Commission, and the Urban Renewal Authority — along with lawyers for Wang Fuk Court’s property manager, ISS EastPoint Property Management Ltd, and for Will Power Architects Co Ltd, the consultant for the estate’s renovation project.

Lok said that the committee has been working “at full speed” since its establishment last December and confirmed it had begun receiving and analyzing documents and information from relevant groups and individuals as part of the probe.

The committee aims to finish its probe within nine months before submitting its report, Lok said, but added that the timeline is “challenging”.

READ MORE: Independent committee starts work as HK moves to liquefy owners’ group

The committee’s key task, according to Lok, is to look into the Wang Fuk Court fire incident —its cause, the reasons for its rapid spread, the adequacy of the complex’s fire safety systems, and oversight by all relevant parties — and more broadly, to examine deeper, industry-wide systemic rot in the city’s major building renovations projects, specifically issues like vested interests and conflicts of interest, collusion, bid-rigging, and tender irregularities that may plague such projects.

Lok said the committee will then assess whether existing laws and regulations in both regards are adequate and fit for purpose, and will recommend legislative improvements where they are not.

To avoid interference with other related legal action, the committee’s remit explicitly excludes making rulings of civil or criminal liability against any individuals or entities involved in the investigation, Lok said.

Dawes said he was “fully confident” the committee has the evidence needed to pursue a thorough investigation into the fire, which, he added, would then enable it to pinpoint systemic flaws and propose meaningful recommendations to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government.

Contact the writer at wanqing@chinadailyhk.com