Govt proposes higher fines for smuggling endangered species

Executive Council spokesman Leong Heng Teng said yesterday the government was proposing to increase the maximum fine for smuggling endangered species from the current 5,000 patacas to 500,000 patacas.Leong made the announcement during a special press conference at Government Headquarters. Leong said the Executive Council (ExCo) had completed discussing a bill on the local enforcement of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), also known

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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Lawmakers question govt’s ‘late’ submission of bills

Lawmakers asked the government yesterday why it is often submitting urgent and important bills to the legislature “so late,” not giving legislators enough time to debate them, Kwan Tsui Hang, who chairs the legislature’s 1st Standing Committee, said yesterday.Kwan, vice chairwoman of the Macau Federation of Trade Unions (commonly known as Gung Luen), made the remarks after presiding over a meeting of the committee about a government-drafted bill on the freezing of terrorism-related

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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Cabbies protest against ‘unfair’ law enforcement

Several dozen taxi drivers protested outside the Public Security Police (PSP) Traffic Police Department in Avenida de Sidonio Pais and the Central People’s Government’s Liaison Office in Zape late last night, accusing the police of abuse of power and “selective” enforcement.The cabbies blocked part of the road in their protest, and during a brief kerfuffle between police officers and taxi drivers, a man was seen lying on the ground. According to media reports, over a dozen taxis were

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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19-year-old nabbed for pimping 15-year-old girl: police

A 19-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday for pimping a 15-year-old girl, a Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said yesterday.A special press briefing about the case was held at the PJ headquarters in Zape.According to the spokesperson, Public Security Police (PSP) officers first learnt of the case when they stopped the victim in Zape during a regular patrol on March 23, as they suspected that she was working as a prostitute. The case was later transferred to the Judiciary Police for further

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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Committee wants clean coastal waters for northern districts

A member of the government-appointed Northern Districts Social Services Consultative Committee urged the government yesterday to hurry up and deal with the coastal water pollution problem that has been plaguing the city’s northern districts for years.Leong Ka Hong made the appeal during a regular meeting of the committee in the government’s service centre in Areia Preta.  Leong said that for many years residents of the northern districts had been complaining about the coast’s

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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Committee wants clean coastal waters for northern districts

Resort to feature banana-grabbing King Kong  US casino mogul Steve Wynn has told his company’s first-ever investor day that he is considering a “lucky 8/8” opening of Wynn Macau in Cotai. Wynn made the remarks at the event in Las Vegas on Wednesday. “We hope to open [Wynn Palace] in July or maybe the first week of August,” Wynn said, adding: “We are thinking of 8/8 [August 8] – sort of lucky numbers.” The magnate also revealed details of the Wynn Palace

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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‘Inadequate’ No. of legal translators creates bottlenecks: official

Legal Affairs Bureau (DSAJ) Director Liu Dexue said yesterday that the inadequate number of legal translators had created a bottleneck in the efficient drafting of bills and regulations.He also said that it could take two or three years for the bureau to recruit enough legal translators proficient in Portuguese and Chinese to overcome the bottleneck.Liu made the remarks after attending a meeting of the Legislative Assembly 1st Standing Committee. Government representatives including Liu

April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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April 8, 2016 | BY admin

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Police nab Colombian drug smuggler at airport

13 million patacas worth of cocaine seizedA Colombian man was arrested at the local airport on Tuesday for smuggling 13 million patacas worth of cocaine, a Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said yesterday.The spokesperson announced details of the case during a special press briefing.According to the spokesperson, the suspect, a 39-year-old salesman surnamed Rojas, came to Macau on a flight from Thailand early morning Tuesday. Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the hooded suspect from

April 7, 2016 | BY admin

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100,000 patacas vanish from safe

The Judiciary Police (PJ) said yesterday that the owner of a local shop told the police that 100,000 patacas in cash had vanished from a safe in his store earlier this week.PJ spokeswoman Lei Hon Nei announced the case during a regular press briefing. The owner of the shop reported the case to the police on Tuesday. The shop is located in Istmo Ferreira do Amaral.Lei said that on Tuesday morning the shop owner found that the safe had been jimmied open and the 100,000 patacas cash had

April 7, 2016 | BY admin

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No plans for TSA in Macau: education chief

The government has no plans to implement a Hong Kong-style Territory-wide System Assessment (TSA) examination in Macau, Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) Director Leong Lai said yesterday.Leong made the remarks during a phone-in programme hosted by Ou Mun Tin Tou, the Chinese-language radio station of government-broadcaster TDM.Several callers expressed concern about the government’s plans to introduce new academic attainment rules for non-tertiary education for P1 to P3 in the coming

April 7, 2016 | BY admin

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Councillors urge govt to release list of dangerous buildings

Three members of the government-appointed Central Districts Community Service Consultative Council – Kuong Iok Kao, Choi Tat Meng and Ron Lam U Tou – yesterday urged the Lands, Public Works and Transports Bureau (DSSOPT) to allow public access to its database listing the city’s dangerous buildings.Addressing yesterdays meeting of the council at the government’s service centre in Rotunda de Carlos da Maia, Lam, a vice-president of local think tank Choi In Tong Sam, said that the past

April 7, 2016 | BY admin

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Govt won’t cap its school fee subsidy: official

Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) Director Leong Lai said yesterday the government wouldn’t be putting a cap on its school fee subsidy scheme.Leong made the remarks after attending a phone-in programme at government broadcaster TDM’s Chinese-language radio station.St Joseph Diocesan College of Macau 5 (CDSJ5) recently came under fire as a number of parents were unhappy about the school’s plans to increase its tuition fees by 3,000 patacas per year for the next three academic

April 7, 2016 | BY admin

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Group calls for ‘complete reform’ of Urban Renewal Council

The government should “completely reform” the composition and workings of its recently-established Urban Renewal Council (CRU), otherwise it should abolish the advisory body, New Macau Association (NMA) President Scott Chiang Meng Hin said yesterday.The grassroots group petitioned the government about their concerns.After handing the group’s petition, which was addressed to Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On, to an official outside Government Headquarters, Chiang told reporters that the

April 7, 2016 | BY admin

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