Govt urges eatery to improve hygiene after diners sicken

Six people fell ill with gastroenteritis after consuming food at a restaurant in Nam Van, the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM) Food Safety Centre said yesterday, urging the restaurant staff to take basic courses to raise their knowledge of food hygiene.The statement said that eight people dined at “Seek Your Choice Bistro” in the evening of February 11 and six of them suffered abdominal pain, diarrhoea and vomiting in the early hours of February 13.According to the statement, after

February 15, 2017 | BY admin

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Police trial reveals ‘systemic loophole’: judge

Witness testimony in a trial involving six police officers has revealed what the presiding judge yesterday called a “systemic loophole” in the Public Security Police (PSP) Intelligence Department.Judge Chao Im Peng made the criticism during the second hearing of the trial at the Court of First Instance (TJB).The six PSP officers were arrested in January last year on suspicion of abetting the illegal activities of a loan-sharking gang by leaking confidential police information, abetting

February 15, 2017 | BY admin

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Lawmaker urges govt to insist on full casino smoking ban

Lawmaker-cum-unionist Ella Lei Cheng I yesterday urged the government to keep its pledge on the ultimate aim of a blanket ban on smoking in all gaming areas of casinos.Lei made the remarks while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Chinese New Year media luncheon hosted by the Legislative Assembly (AL) at Macau Tower.Recent research conducted by the University of Macau (UM) show that 60 percent of Macau’s casino workers think a full smoking ban in casinos would have a positive impact

February 15, 2017 | BY admin

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São Tiago hotel to close temporarily

Pousada de São Tiago in Avenida da República will temporarily close from March 31 and remain closed until the construction of the Barra Transport Complex is completed, SJM Managing Director and Chief Administrative Officer Angela Leong On Kei said yesterday.The government’s Barra Transport Complex is planned to include the peninsula’s light rail transit (LRT) link with the LRT section in Taipa and Coloane slated to open in 2019.The five-star hotel was formerly the Fortress of São Tiago

February 15, 2017 | BY admin

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Speaker confident all bills to be voted on before end of term

Legislative Assembly (AL) President Ho Iat Seng said yesterday he was confident that the bills which are being reviewed in the legislature’s standing committees can be resubmitted to the legislature’s plenum for their final article-by-article votes, by the time the legislature completes its current term later this year.The city’s top lawmaker also said that if the business sector supports him to run in the upcoming indirect legislative election, he will stand for re-election.Ho, an

February 15, 2017 | BY admin

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60 pct of casino workers back smoking lounges

Research findings show that 60 percent of Macau’s casino workers think that a full smoking ban in casinos would have a positive impact on them, but when given options, only 40 percent chose a full smoking ban whereas 60 percent preferred the retention of smoking lounges, University of Macau (UM) Faculty of Business Administration Associate Professor Desmond Lam Chee Shiong said yesterday.Among the 60 percent who preferred the retention of smoking lounges, 47 percent opted for improved air

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Police nab suspected robbers

The Judiciary Police (PJ) have arrested two men from the mainland on suspicion of robbing a male compatriot of his mobile phone, PJ spokeswoman Lei Hon Nei said during a special press conference yesterday.Lei identified the two suspects as surnamed Rao, aged 29, and Li, aged 32.Lei said that last Tuesday, the victim was sitting in Nam Van after gambling in a casino nearby. Rao went up to the victim and asked him whether he would like to borrow some money to gamble with.Judiciary Police (PJ)

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Relaying of cable is ‘isolated case’: CEM

CEM Customer Liaison Committee Vice President Iun Iok Meng yesterday described the relaying of the underground high-voltage cable connecting the power utility’s substation in Ilha Verde to its substation in Cotai only five years after the cable was first laid, which was designed to last 30 years, as an “isolated case”.Local think tank Macau Synergy Association held a press conference about the issue last week, urging the government and CEM to explain why the cable needed to be relayed.The

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Govt to consult public on LRT law

The government launched a two-month public consultation yesterday on proposed legislation on the future operation of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) system, with the aim of finishing a draft bill regulating the matter by the end of this year.A press conference about the public consultation was held yesterday at the Transport Bureau (DSAT). It was co-hosted by Transport Infrastructure Office (GIT) Deputy Director Ng Keng Chung. The government has said that the Taipa segment of the LRT is scheduled

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Group petitions govt to preserve 11 Coloane shipyards

The grassroots New Macau Association (NMA) handed in a petition, addressed to Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On, at Government Headquarters yesterday, urging the government to preserve all 11 derelict shipyards in Coloane’s Lai Chi Vun Village and redevelop them in line with the research into the site by the government in 2012.A total of 11 dilapidated shipyards out of 14 in Coloane’s Lai Chi Vun Village will be demolished starting next month, Marine and Water Bureau (DSAMA) Director

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Woman cheated out of 1.2 million yuan in diamond scam

A mainland woman was cheated out of 1.2 million yuan in a diamond investment scam by a mainland man she met online, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokeswoman Lei Hon Nei said yesterday during a regular press briefing.Lei said the woman became friends with the man, through an online messaging application in 2015, who claimed to be involved in the VIP rooms in one of the local casinos as well as investments in diamonds.According to Lei, the woman came to Macau on January 11 to meet the man, who then

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Bill offers minors better protection: lawmakers

During a meeting of the legislature’s 3rd Standing Committee yesterday, lawmakers agreed with the government’s intention of making people who pay for sex with minors criminally responsible, as well as those who produce, sell and distribute pornography involving minors, Cheang Chi Keong, who chairs the committee, said.Cheang briefed reporters after a closed-door meeting with government officials, including Secretary for Administration and Justice Sonia Chan Hoi Fan, at the Legislative

February 14, 2017 | BY admin

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Leong expects economy to show ‘modest’ growth

Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac says the government is confident that Macau’s economy will record “modest” growth this year.Leong made the remarks on Friday at the headquarters of the local branch of Bank of China (BOC) on the sidelines of a Chinese New Year reception hosted by the Macau Association of Banks (ABM), saying that while Macau’s economy in the first half of last year continued the downward trend seen in 2015, the second half of 2016 recorded a

February 13, 2017 | BY admin

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USJ to teach local Creole

The Lifelong Learning Office of the private University of St. Joseph will launch a three-month course on Patuá, Macau’s critically endangered Creole.According to the university’s website, the course will be taught by Alan Baxter, a creolist and dean of the USJ Faculty of Humanities.The 20-hour course, which will be taught in Portuguese and English, will run every Wednesday from 6:30 p.m. to 21:00 p.m. from next week to April 12. The course fee amounts to 1,600 patacas.Cover of a brochure

February 13, 2017 | BY admin

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