Torrential rain causes wall collapse

Part of a brick wall near the CEM headquarters collapsed during torrential rain in the early hours of yesterday.The seven-metre section was fenced off after the collapse at the junction of Rua dos Pescadores and Estrada de D. Maria II (known as Melco bend during the Macau Grand Prix).The Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG) recorded rainfall of over 60 millimetres at its monitoring station on Big Taipa Hill between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. yesterday.Two buses stop at a bus stop in Estrada de D.

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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Draghi’s speech at Jackson Hole – pertinent & timely

The annual Jackson Hole 2-day economic symposium ended on August 26. The title this year was, “Fostering a Dynamic Global Recovery”.After Janet L. Yellen, chair of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, gave her speech in the morning, Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), gave his luncheon address.Draghi’s speech was entitled “Sustaining Openness in a Dynamic Global Economy”. It was more pertinent to the symposium’s title than Yellen’s “Financial

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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New Macau Progressives pushing for political reform

Sulu Sou Ka Hou, the first-ranked candidate of the New Macau Progressives (ANPM) group, the No. 7 on the ballot, said yesterday that his group would push for political reform and other institutional reforms widely regarded as “difficult” tasks in Macau.Sou’s list comprises five candidates. Ex-lawmaker Paul Chan Wai Chi is the group’s second-ranked candidate.Four years ago, the New Macau Association (NMA) ran three lists for the direct legislative election. Veteran lawmakers Ng Kuok

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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New Hope calls for 12,000 pataca cash handout

New Hope (NE) members yesterday urged the government to increase its annual cash handout to 12,000 patacas next year as residents have to cope with the constantly rising prices of daily necessities.New Hope (No. 6 on the ballot paper) is led by current lawmaker-cum-unionist Jose Maria Pereira Coutinho, who has been a legislator since 2005. The group is vying with 23 other groups for 14 directly-elected seats in the Legislative Assembly.The group’s second-ranked candidate Leong Veng Chai won a

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt should pay seniors 10,000 patacas a month: UMG

Lawmaker-cum-building contractor Mak Soi Kun said yesterday he and fellow legislator Zheng Anting were confident of winning at least two seats in the September 17 direct legislative election, adding that as a lawmaker he had the responsibility to fight for grassroots residents’ interests.Mak also said the government should pay senior citizens 10,000 patacas a month.Mak, who has been a lawmaker since 2009, is the first-ranked candidate of the Macau-Guangdong Union (UMG) (No. 20), while Zheng,

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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Locals cheated in wedding banquet, rental scams: police

A man believed to be the same person has cheated a local man and a woman out of HK$15,000 and HK$35,000 respectively in two separate scams, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokeswoman Lei Hon Nei said yesterday.According to Lei, the woman read a status update posted by the suspect on social media on August 27 that a residential flat in Areia Preta was available for rent. The update said the rent was HK$12,000 per month.The woman contacted the suspect, Lei said, adding she viewed the flat with the suspect

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt removes 3 tonnes of dead fish

The Marine and Water Bureau (DSAMA) said in a statement yesterday that its staff members yesterday removed a total of three tonnes of dead fish from the waters off Fai Chi Kei and Ilha Verde.According to the statement, officials from the Environmental Protection Bureau (DSPA) believe that the low level of dissolved oxygen in the Inner Harbour’s brackish water had killed the fish.The bureau dispatched a number of boats to remove the dead fish after receiving reports about a large quantity of

September 5, 2017 | BY admin

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UPP aims to help residents solve problems

Direct legislative election group Progress Promotion Union (UPP) said yesterday that its political platform puts special emphasis on policies to improve residents’ daily lives while the group is also calling for the implementation of an accountability system for government officials.The election group’s nine candidates announced their political platform during a press conference yesterday at Pak Wai Activities Centre.The centre is run by the Macau General Union of Neighbourhood Associations

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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Civic Watch stresses institutional reforms

Civic Watch members yesterday stressed the importance of institutional reforms for tackling the city’s various issues, insisting that their political platform’s proposals are feasible.Civic Watch is led by Agnes Lam Iok Fong, assistant dean of the University of Macau’s (UM) Faculty of Social Sciences. The group is vying with 23 other groups for 14 directly-elected seats in the Legislative Assembly.The group’s five candidates announced their political platform during a press conference

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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Seasoned lawmaker wants to witness passing of era

Seasoned lawmaker Ng Kuok Cheong said yesterday he was keen to witness the passing of an era, adding that his electoral group aimed to win at least two seats in the September 17 direct legislative election.Ng, who has been a lawmaker since 1992, is the first-ranked candidate of the Democratic Prosperous Macau Association (APMD), while Luis Leong Pok Man, a staff member of the University of Macau (UM), is the second-ranked candidate.Ng’s list comprises six candidates.Speaking to The Macau Post

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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Official election campaign kicks off

Candidates running in the September 17 legislative elections and their supporters gathered in Praça do Tap Seac around midnight on Friday to mark the official start of the two-week official campaign period by putting up their respective electoral groups’ campaign posters.Reporters said about a thousand people were present.Officially, the campaign started at 0:00 on Saturday and ends on September 15 at 11:59 p.m. No campaigning is allowed on the eve of polling day. Campaigning is also

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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Typhoons slow casino revenue growth in August

Macau’s casino revenue growth slowed in August after accelerating for three consecutive months as two typhoons disrupted operations in the city.Gross gaming receipts rose 20.4 percent year on year to 22.67 billion patacas last month, according to data released by the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) on Friday. That exceeds the median estimate for an 18.5 percent increase in a Bloomberg survey of eight analysts. Gaming revenue climbed 29.2 percent to 22.96 billion patacas in

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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Hato fiasco reveals deep-rooted problems: academic

The Hato disaster could push the 24 election groups in the direct legislative election on September 17 to pay more attention to the solving of deep-rooted problems in Macau’s civil society, Chan Chi Wang, an academic from the University of Hong Kong, said yesterday.Chan made the comments while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a forum about the landscape of the direct legislative election.The forum, organised by the local Catholic publication Observatório de Macau (“Macau

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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Ex-liaison chief axed, Zhuhai mayor probed

The former director of the Central People’s Government Liaison Office in Macau, Li Gang, has lost his National People’s Congress (NPC) seat and is under investigation for “severe violations of party discipline”, according to a statement on the NPC website on Friday.Li was abruptly removed from his post as deputy chief of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council late last month. He had held the post since July last year.Observers have pointed out that the 62-year-old

September 4, 2017 | BY admin

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