Workers’ confidence rises: survey But croupiers’ confidence is down

Findings of a survey released yesterday show a slight rise in Macau employees’ overall confidence and satisfaction last month compared to a year earlier, Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) Prof. Chan Lai Kow announced yesterday.On a scale of 1 to 5, last month’s Macau employee confidence index stood at 3.05 with a 0.1 percent increase year on year, while the satisfaction index stood at 3.37 with a 0.03 percent year-on-year rise.Chan, who heads the university’s Institute for

March 22, 2017 | BY admin

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Lawmakers reject debate about rise in vehicle-related fees

The legislature yesterday rejected a debate motion by directly-elected lawmaker-cum-unionist Leong Veng Chai, who questioned whether it was appropriate for the government to “hugely” increase the government’s vehicle-related fees and fines in January.A total of 30 lawmakers cast their votes, with 10 supporting the motion and 14 voting against it, while two lawmakers abstained.A list of steeply increased fees and fines initiated by the Transport Bureau (DSAT) was signed by Chief Executive

March 22, 2017 | BY admin

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‘Gambler’ cheats engineer out of 40,990 patacas

A local man was cheated out of 40,990 patacas on Monday by a man claiming to be a gambler who had lost all his money, a Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said yesterday during a regular press conference.The spokesperson said the victim, a 26-year-old local engineer, told the police that he was walking near the World Trade Centre Macau in Nape in the evening when the suspect approached him.The suspect told the victim that he had gambled away all his money and wanted to borrow some cash from

March 22, 2017 | BY admin

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Taiwan wants stronger cooperation with Macau

Macau’s role in cross-Strait relations is very important when they are strained, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office Director-General Lu Chang-shui said yesterday, adding he hoped that cooperation between Taiwan and Macau will be further strengthened.Lu made the remarks at The Plaza Restaurant in Zape on the sidelines of a promotion event about bed and breakfasts (B&Bs) in Taiwan, co-hosted by his office and the Hong Kong Office of the Taiwan Tourism Bureau.According to Lu, the

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt bans flueless gas water heaters

The government has banned the sale or supply of flueless gas water heaters from today, according to an order by Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On published in the Official Gazette (BO) yesterday.According to the installation requirements for domestic gas water heaters issued by the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department in Hong Kong, such water heaters do not have a flue to convey combustion gas to external air.Pointing out that a number of carbon monoxide poisoning cases occurred in

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt sets up committee to develop coastal waters

The government has established a committee with the aim of promoting the development and improvement of the management of the city’s coastal waters, according to an announcement in the Official Gazette (BO) yesterday.The announcement was made in the form of an executive order signed by Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On.In December 2015, the central government granted Macau jurisdiction over 85 square kilometres of its coastal waters to help with its economic diversification. Previously,

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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Portuguese School to get new wing

The Portuguese School will get a new wing and a sports pavilion, Maria Edith da Silva, the new president of the Council of Curators of the Macau Portuguese School Foundation, told the Portuguese-language radio channel of government-owned broadcaster TDM yesterday.Edith da Silva was elected during yesterday’s regular meeting of the Council of Curators which also includes Macau’s last Portuguese governor, General Vasco Rocha Vieira.According to Edith da Silva, a former director of the

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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Woman loses 312,900 yuan in phone scam

The Judiciary Police (PJ) yesterday announced a phone scam case in which a local woman lost 312,900 yuan (362,500 patacas) after she deposited the money into a bank account in the mainland, when someone pretending to be from a law enforcement agency in the mainland claimed that the victim was involved in an “economic crime” case and that depositing money into a bank account could speed up the investigative process.During a regular press conference, PJ spokesman Chan Cho Man identified the

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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MSAR passports granted visa-on-arrival entry to Ukraine

Holders of Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) passports will be granted visa-on-arrival entry to Ukraine, the Macau government said yesterday.The Identification Services Bureau was notified by the embassy of Ukraine Beijing on Monday that the holders of MSAR passports traveling to Ukraine for tourism or business can obtain a single-entry visa upon their arrival at Boryspil International Airport in Kyiv and Odessa International Airport in Odessa for a maximum stay of 15 days.A total of

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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Police nab 9 loan-sharking suspects

The police arrested nine mainlanders yesterday for alleged membership of a loan-sharking gang, a Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said during a special press conference yesterday.The spokesperson said the police were tipped off about a week ago about a gang of mainlanders offering instant loans to gamblers in casinos in Taipa and giving clients cash advances on their credit or debit cards.After investigating, the police discovered that the gang was based in a residential flat in Rua de Chaves

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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88 pct of households have Internet: survey

About 88.6 percent of the city’s households – 167,600 in total – used the Internet last year, up by 2.3 percentage points year on year, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) announced yesterday.The number of households using fibre optic broadband connection leapt by 115 percent year on year to 77,900 at the end of last year, resulting in a decline in the number of households using fixed broadband connection by 36.2 percent o 71,200.The number of Internet users aged 3 and above increased

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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Woman steals diamond ring from friend: police

The Judiciary Police (PJ) arrested a young woman from the mainland on Friday on suspicion of stealing a diamond ring valued at 350,000 yuan from her friend who had left it in the bathroom of their hotel room, PJ spokesman Chan Cho Man said yesterday.Chan identified the suspect as a 20-year-old surnamed Wang and the victim as a 25-year-old. Chan did not disclose the victim’s surname.According to Chan, the victim and her four female friends arrived in Macau from the mainland on Thursday and

March 21, 2017 | BY admin

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MGTO has no concrete plans for Greater Bay Area yet: tourism chief

The development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area will require “large-scale” co-operation among the three regions, and the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) has no concrete plans about it yet, MGTO Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes said yesterday.Senna Fernandes made the remarks on the sidelines of a sharing session at Macau Fisherman’s Wharf Convention & Exhibition Centre co-hosted by the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) and the Secretariat for

March 20, 2017 | BY admin

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Election reformer dies

Ex-legislator Rui Afonso, widely known as the prime mover in the city’s 1980s electoral reforms that gave local Chinese the right to vote, died in Lisbon on Friday, Portuguese media reported at the weekend.According to the reports, the 70-year-old lawyer died after a prolonged illness.Afonso was a member of the Macau Legislative Assembly from 1984 to 1997. He headed the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP) in the 1980s when he was one of the driving forces behind a profound

March 20, 2017 | BY admin

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