十多年前《壹週刊》要移植台灣，香港《壹週刊》的員工要在短時間內複製一本雜誌出來，美術部同事赴台，教台灣美術同事排版；我寫人物專訪，到台灣跟那裡寫專訪的同事交流；財經組自然要跟對口的財經的同事面授機宜。總之，受訪對象和題材是台灣的人和事，但採訪的手法則跟香港壹仔一樣。
記得台灣同事最大的疑惑，就是「大起底」這句廣東話。為何無論時事、財經以至娛樂組都要「大起底」（daqidi）？
查冊是我們很早已開始用的調查方法，憑著合法途徑，可以找到公司董事或者業主的資料。用一間公司名，可查到該公司的董事和秘書的名字，找到他們的住址和身分證號碼。而憑著住址，又可以拿到土地註冊處繼續調查。
政府最近修例，容許公司董事不再需要呈報住址，只以通訊地址登記便可。除了特定的公職人士或破產者的財產委託人，一般公眾再無法查閱這些資料。
政府以私隱為由，收緊公開資料，聽來理所當然。但公司董事不再需要呈報住址，對做生意的人有何影響，我鞭長莫及。但對從事偵查報道的記者來說，則少了一種強而有力的工具。
記得很多年前，一個前高官退休，大家估計他會為某大財團工作，可惜苦無證據。直至有一天，記者在花園道駕車，遇上此人的車，一輪追逐之後，最終被拋離。記者記下車牌進行調查，查得此人的住址，再拿此住址往土地註冊處一查，發現該物業正是該大財團持有。此人與大財團的關係，終於有眉目。
類似的例子，不勝枚舉。幾多得獎的大新聞，都是記者憑著查冊得來的資料開始的。政府修例，同時將掩埋很多見不得光的事。
相關報道：限查公司註冊 廢傳媒武功
香港外國記者會（FCC）寫信給梁振英，反對政府修例（資料來源）：
Dear Mr Leung,
The Foreign Correspondents' Club, Hong Kong, is concerned about and opposes a proposed change to the Companies Ordinance that will withhold details of the residential addresses and Identity Card/Passport numbers of company directors from public access.
Company searches are an important tool and source of information for investigative journalism and we regret that we were not invited to provide feedback on this change during a public consultation at the end of last year.
In your address to us last month you pledged to uphold the importance of a free and open media in Hong Kong and we believe that the ability of foreign correspondents and journalists to legally access information about individuals and their companies is vital to our role of reporting on issues of public interest.
We call on the government to withdraw this amendment and to maintain its support for the free flow of information in Hong Kong.
Sincerely,
香港外國記者會（FCC）寫信給梁振英，反對政府修例（資料來源）：
Dear Mr Leung,
The Foreign Correspondents' Club, Hong Kong, is concerned about and opposes a proposed change to the Companies Ordinance that will withhold details of the residential addresses and Identity Card/Passport numbers of company directors from public access.
Company searches are an important tool and source of information for investigative journalism and we regret that we were not invited to provide feedback on this change during a public consultation at the end of last year.
In your address to us last month you pledged to uphold the importance of a free and open media in Hong Kong and we believe that the ability of foreign correspondents and journalists to legally access information about individuals and their companies is vital to our role of reporting on issues of public interest.
We call on the government to withdraw this amendment and to maintain its support for the free flow of information in Hong Kong.
Sincerely,
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