Kou Hoi In, president of the Legislative Assembly, was not completely satisfied that no senior official was present to answer lawmakers’ question on the long-proposed logistics facility on the delta bridge’s Macau island.
Yesterday’s parliamentary plenary was reserved for lawmakers’ oral enquiries.
Lawmaker Ip Sio Kai asked about the proposed logistic facility on the Macau Border Checkpoint Island of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, as well as its progress.
Instead of any senior official, the government was represented by the director-general of the Macao Customs, Vong Man Chong, for this particular agenda item.
After rounds of lawmakers raising their questions on the topic, the president of the parliament could not hold it and voiced out his concerns. This is not uncommon for the head of the parliament to voice out to defend the legislature’s dignity.
Kou highlighted his understanding on the importance of the logistics facility. He believed that government representatives should have been able to give lawmakers – as well as members of the public – on the impact of the bridge on our logistic industry.
Furthermore, he believed the government should have also been able to disclose its evaluation on the matter.
With the government revealing that the scale of the logistics facility will be shrunk, the parliamentary head addressed that he understood the government is trying to lower costs, but many questions were left unanswered.
Vong reiterated at the plenary that facilities on the Inner Harbor will be ultimately relocated to the dock in Ka-Hó, but Kou himself had wondered whether the facility in Ka-Hó has sufficient capacity to handle all extra workload.
“These questions cannot be answered by the present officials. I don’t think the director-general can answer our questions today,” Kou admitted. “But how come there is no senior official present? Probably because the government has no idea who should take the lead.”
During the inquiry session, Vong disclosed that the logistics facility will be handled by three bureau-level entities. The Transport Bureau (DSAT) will handle the design and construction phase. The Economic and Technological Development Bureau (DSEDT) will be responsible for the operation of the future facility. The Customs, of course, will handle cargo clearance.
This the reason why Kou made his comment. He expressly emphasized that the project of the logistics facility is a cross-departmental operation.
Vong said the facility should be expected at the end of year 2024. Originally planned for an area of about 56,000 sqm., the future logistics facility will only measure 16,000 sqm. when built, after the government decided to shrink the scale.
The government’s justification on the downsizing is that the Urban Planning Law stipulates a different use of the piece of land in question. The government needs to change its plans so as not to violate the law that it had drafted.
The positioning of the facility will also be changed from a logistics center to a cargo transport facility, a move that some lawmakers found downplaying or insulting to the logistics industry of Macau. Lawmaker Si Ka Lon even pointed out that government has not tried its best to secure enough parking spaces for the trucks.
In addition, lawmaker Ron Law wondered how the government would develop logistics in Macau with a downgraded facility on a transport hub. He stressed that many industries, such as the meeting, incentives, convention and exhibition (MICE) industry, rely heavily on seamless logistics. He questioned the government with a downgraded facility, how can the city diversify its economy.
Some lawmakers doubted the government’s reliance on the Ka-Hó Dock, which will eventually push up delivery costs because trucks have to travel a long way to delivery cargo.
