Ex-prosecutor hires new lawyer

Macau’s former prosecutor Ho Chio Meng, who is standing trial for a raft of serious crimes, has hired a new lawyer, government-owned broadcaster TDM reported yesterday.According to TDM, Oriana Inácio Pun will defend Ho.Pun was quoted by TDM as saying that she had asked the Court of Final Appeal (TUI) to suspend Ho’s trial so that she could prepare her case. By law, the suspension may last 30 days. PLEASE READ THE FULL ARTICLE IN OUR PRINT EDITION.

March 14, 2017 | BY admin

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CE schedules legislative ballot for Sept 17

The direct and indirect Legislative Assembly elections have been scheduled for September 17, according to an order by Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On published in the Official Gazette (BO) yesterday.By law, all local elections must be held on a Sunday. Campaigning is not allowed on the eve of polling day. The official campaign period last two weeks.According to another announcement in yesterday’s gazette, the officially allowed maximum expenditure for each list of candidates in the

March 14, 2017 | BY admin

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4 men nabbed for injuring 3 cops

Four local men injured three police officers when resisting arrest on Saturday after the quartet’s alleged involvement in a fight at a restaurant in Areia Preta, a Public Security Police (PSP) spokesperson said yesterday during a regular press conference.The spokesperson said the four men, aged between 40 and 50, were eating at a restaurant in Rua do Canal Novo with a female friend late Saturday night when a man from another table reportedly touched the woman’s bottom.A quarrel began

March 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Polytec boss vows pre-sale buyers come first

Polytec Asset Holdings Limited Chairman Or Wai Sheun said yesterday he was willing to put Pearl Horizon pre-sale buyers’ interests first when dealing with the Pearl Horizon residential project dispute, while Kou Meng Pok, the president of the Pearl Horizon Condominium Owners United Association, said Or’s motive was merely to show society that he was sincere about solving the row.The residential project has been mothballed since the government decided in 2015 to axe the ill-fated project’s

March 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Culture chief vows review of staff hiring procedures

Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Leung Hio Ming promised yesterday that his bureau will review its procedures for hiring staff, with the aim of ensuring that its recruitment procedures will always be conducted in line with the law.Leung made the pledge in response to a hard-hitting report released by the Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) late last week, which slammed the bureau for having hired a large number of staff illegally through acquisition of services (AoS) contracts.Apart from

March 13, 2017 | BY admin

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Tutorial centre bill ready for legislation: govt

An amendment bill on the licensing and supervision of private tutorial centres is ready to be submitted to the legislature, Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) Deputy Director Lou Pak Sang said yesterday.Lou made the remarks on the sidelines of the opening ceremony for a series of health promotion activities by the Macau New Chinese Youth Association.The ceremony was held at the Areia Preta Public Health Centre. Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) Deputy Director Lou Pak Sang speaks

March 13, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt should unify medical records: doctor

The government should set up a unified electronic medical record (EMR) system to make healthcare more convenient for practitioners and patients alike, paediatrician Wu Xiaocheng said yesterday.Wu made the suggestion during a forum hosted by the Macau Civic Power (ECM) group, which discussed how the Medical Malpractice Law, which took effect last month, protects healthcare workers and patients, and whether the law can improve Macau’s healthcare system. Wu was one of the panellists at the

March 13, 2017 | BY admin

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Culture chief vows review of staff hiring procedures

The report acknowledged that previously a number of government entities employed staff through AoS contracts in line with Decree Law No.122/84/M. However, most of the government entities have stopped hiring workers through AoS contracts in recent years, after the CCAC and the Commission of Audit (CA) repeatedly pointed out that such contracts are inappropriate, the report says.According to the report, the commission launched an investigation in April last year into the bureau’s recruitment of

March 13, 2017 | BY admin

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Forum opposes proposed fine for LRT passengers

Guest speakers and members of the audience at yesterday’s Macau Forum opposed the suggestion that passengers be fined if they occupy priority seats in the future Light Rail Transit (LRT) carriages, as proposed by the government during a public consultation process about the future operation of the system.The weekly open-air debate is hosted by government-owned broadcaster TDM in Areia Preta Park every Sunday.The government last month launched a two-month public consultation on proposed

March 13, 2017 | BY admin

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Police nab man for taking upskirts for 7 years

The Public Security Police (PSP) officers arrested a local man on Wednesday for taking upskirt photos of women in the city’s streets for seven years, PSP spokeswoman Chong Sin I said yesterday.PSP officers also found that the suspect’s mobile phone contained more than 1,700 photos that he furtively took of women in the streets, according to Chong.Chong announced details of the case during a regular press briefing yesterday. Chong identified the suspect as an unmarried casino dealer in his

March 10, 2017 | BY admin

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Lawmaker vows to propose new holiday rules Bill also asks for 5-day paternity leave

Lawmaker-cum-unionist Ella Lei Cheng I said yesterday she planned to submit an amendment bill to the legislature to mandate employees’ holiday entitlements and statutory paternity leave.Lei said she handed the proposal to Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On on Wednesday requesting his permission to submit the bill to the Legislative Assembly (AL) for debate and vote.Lei said she was still awaiting Chui’s response.According to Article 105 legislature’s regulatory framework law,

March 10, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt to change heads of advisory bodies

Executive Council spokesman Leong Heng Teng said yesterday the government has decided that the Urban Planning Council will be chaired by the director of the Lands, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT), while the Traffic Consultative Council will be headed by the director of the Transport Bureau (DSAT).The government’s decision will amend the by-laws (administrative regulations) regulating the operations of the two government-appointed councils, as both are currently chaired by the

March 10, 2017 | BY admin

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Taiwan man caught for running fake base stations

A man from Taiwan was arrested on Wednesday for operating two fake base stations, a Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said during a special press conference yesterday. A fake base station is telecom equipment which sends out a signal, disconnecting mobile phone users in an area from their legitimate base stations and who then receive messages from the fake one instead.The spokesperson said after investigating the police identified a flat in Toi San district. Officers saw the suspect, a

March 10, 2017 | BY admin

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Mak the dragon takes kids on literary adventure through city

Children who watch Peppa Pig on repeat as the cheeky little piggy talks about gardening in the back garden and having a cup of tea, now have something they can relate to with Mak the dragon chomping on Portuguese egg tarts and watching the Macau Grand Prix.Mak is the main character in a children’s trilingual – Chinese, Portuguese and English – book series, titled “Mak the City’s Friendly Dragon” and written by Bernadette Logana Ubogan Terra, who is originally from the Philippines.

March 10, 2017 | BY admin

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