Notary to be required for rent contracts: lawmaker

Lawmaker-cum-banker Cheang Chi Keong said yesterday that his standing committee and the initiators of a rent control bill had reached an agreement according to which a public or private notary must be present when a rent contract is signed.The proposal is part of the bill initiated by nine of the legislature’s 33 lawmakers.The legislature’s 3rd Standing Committee yesterday held a closed-door meeting with government officials and some of the lawmakers who initiated the bill. Cheang briefed

May 13, 2016 | BY admin

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Activists vow to gather near CE’s home after Sunday’s protest

New Macau Association (NMA) activists said yesterday that they plan to assemble in a park next to Chief Executive Chui Sai On’s residence on Penha Hill after their protest on Sunday which aims to press the Macau Foundation (FM) to withdraw its controversial decision to donate 100 million yuan (123 million patacas) to Jinan University in Guangzhou.The NMA activists also demand that Chui step down over the decision to grant the donation, and that the foundation improve its transparency when

May 13, 2016 | BY admin

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21st MIF to invite Portugal as ‘partner country’: IPIM

The Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) will invite Portugal to become the partner country at this year’s 21st Macau International Trade and Investment Fair (MIF), IPIM Executive Director Gloria Batalha Ung said yesterday.Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a seminar themed “Ideas from Europe, Ideas from Macau” at Macau Tower, Ung said the three-day fair will open on October 20, adding that she expected the exhibition to be “a bit bigger” than in previous

May 13, 2016 | BY admin

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Sands China ‘pleased’ about mid-term gaming report

Sands China says that it is “pleased” about the government’s mid-term gaming report. According to a statement issued by the gaming operator just a few hours after the government had released the report on Wednesday afternoon, the report enables Sands China “to gain a deeper understanding of the directives, guidelines and policies moving forward for the development of the gaming industry in Macau.”In the statement, the company headed by US gaming mogul Sheldon Adelson reaffirms

May 13, 2016 | BY admin

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Slow approval process delays SJM’s non-gaming development: Leong

SJM executive director-cum-lawmaker Angela Leong On Kei said yesterday her company had always been working to increase its non-gaming elements, but lamented that the government’s slow approval process for land use was  delaying its development.Leong made the remarks on the sidelines of a closed-door meeting at the legislature.The government on Wednesday published its long-awaited mid-term evaluation report on the gaming sector’s performance, as Macau’s three gaming concessions and

May 13, 2016 | BY admin

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Chui apologises for miscommunication over donation

Speaking about the Macau Foundation’s (FM) controversial decision to donate 100 million yuan (123 million patacas) to Jinan University in Guangzhou, Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On, who is also a deputy chairman of the university’s board of directors and the chairman of the foundation’s Council of Trustees, said yesterday that he did not pass anything from his left hand to his right hand or any other way, adding that he had neither the power nor the willingness to do that. He

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Group vows to boost Macau-Shandong ties

The Macau Shandong Friendship Association will continue to put its best effort into boosting co-operation between the city and the coastal province in aspects such as culture, education and economic development, Che Seak Man, president of the association, said yesterday.The association held its 10th anniversary celebration and the swearing-in ceremony of the new board members at Sands Cotai Central last night, which was attended by a number of high-ranking guests including former chief

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Views divided on election campaign spending cap

Opinions were divided last night over the election campaign spending cap proposed in the government’s amendment bill to the Legislative Assembly Election Law. While some called for a lower cap, others said they felt a lower cap would be disadvantageous for newcomers.A consultation session for civic groups and government-appointed consultative committees was held at the Tourism Activities Centre (CAT) in Zape yesterday.The government is carrying out a month-long public consultation on the

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Council agrees not to list old house in Rua da Barca

The government-appointed Cultural Heritage Council yesterday held a secret ballot to decide whether an old house in Rua da Barca should be added to the government’s cultural heritage protection list.Thirteen of the 16 members of the council who attended yesterday’s council meeting and cast their votes opted for the building’s exclusion from the list, while three members supported its inclusion.Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Guilherme Ung Vai Meng, the council’s vice president,

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Gaming regulator vows stricter rules for junkets

Gaming Inspection and Co-ordination Bureau (DICJ) Paulo Martins Chan said yesterday that the government will continue its plan to tighten regulation of the junket sector, including raising the initial investment amount.Chan made the remarks during a press conference about the government’s mid-term evaluation report on the gaming sector’s performance.The press conference was held at the Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute’s (IPIM) Macau Business Support Centre (MBSC) in

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Developer urges govt to ponder legal status of 5-year plan

Association of Property Agents and Realty Developers of Macau President Ung Choi Kun yesterday urged the government to ponder the legal status, or “constitutional statues” in Ung’s words, of the city’s first Five-Year Development Plan, which is still being drafted. Ung, a former legislator, made the remarks during a consultation session on the draft for Chief Executive Election Committee members at the Macau East Asian Games Dome in Cotai. The government is carrying out a two-month

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Mid-term gaming report not related to renewal of concessions: Leong

Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac said yesterday that the government’s mid-term gaming sector performance report wasn’t related to the renewal of the city’s gaming concessions, but rather to allow gaming operators to see what they can improve on.Leong made the remarks during a press conference on the government’s mid-term evaluation report of the gaming sector’s performance. Macau’s three gaming concessions and three sub-concessions will expire between 2020

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Consul proposes ‘Month of Portugal’

Portuguese Consul-General Vitor Sereno proposed yesterday to hold a ‘Month of Portugal’ in Macau in June, coinciding with Portugal’s national day on June 10. Sereno made the proposal during a press conference at the consulate about a dozen events to celebrate Portugal’s national day next month. The diplomat, who is simultaneously accredited in Hong Kong, said he would convey the idea of holding the month-long activity to Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Alexis Tam Chon Weng

May 12, 2016 | BY admin

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Jinan Uni applied for 292 million yuan: foundation head

Macau Foundation (FM) President Wu Zhiliang said yesterday that Jinan University in Guangzhou applied to the foundation for a subsidy of 292 million yuan (358 million patacas) for its planned media studies centre and two Hong Kong-Macau student halls on the university’s new campus in Guangzhou’s Panyu district.Wu was quick to add that after analysing the application the foundation gave it 100 million yuan, or about one third of the total budget of the planned development projects.He also

May 11, 2016 | BY admin

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