AL Plenary | Infectious diseases building location divides lawmakers

Whether or not the Infectious Diseases Building should occupy the area set by the government on Guia Hill next to the Public Hospital (CHCSJ) seems to not only be dividing public opinion, but also the lawmakers.
The Legislative Assembly (AL) met in plenary meeting yesterday to debate the topic, requested individually by the lawmakers Au Kam San, Song Pek Kei, Si Ka Lon and Leong Veng Chai.
Au Kam San stated his reasons for disagreement with the government saying, “We understand the importance of the [infectious diseases] building, nobody is against of its construction. We are just concerned with its localization and with the need for locating it in such a high-density location,” he said.
Lawmaker Song Peng Kei echoed the sentiments, adding: “It would be better if the main [infectious diseases] unit could be located in the future Islands Health Complex.”
Song also advanced the possibility that a “[smaller] CHCSJ-­based unit could be an addition to complement the Islands’ Unit.”

The Health Bureau director, Lei Chin Ion (left) and Alexis Tam

Agreeing with Song was Chan Iek Lap who considered the location of the Islands as more suitable for the “safeguarding of the population and of health services professionals.”
On the government side, the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam, tried to explain to the lawmakers the need for this building to be located at the site of CHCSJ, emphasizing that it is essential “in order to provide better conditions for both patients and the health service professionals.”
Tam explained: “This localization is due to the need for support of other services [from the main hospital] improving the treatment of the patients.”
The secretary also explained that locating Infectious Diseases Units together with main hospital facilities “is also a world trend,” citing the examples of Hong Kong’s Princess Margaret Hospital and Guangzhou’s People’s 8th Hospital that are also following the international trend.
Answering lawmaker Lei Cheng I, Tam added: “An early diagnosis and a fast response are very important factors in the early stages [of treatment]. Building near the general hospital will allow a fast response in diagnosis and isolation.”
Another of the questions directed to the government from several lawmakers was in regards to both the time and budget needed to build the unit. Proponents such as Secretary Tam admitted that, with several unanswered questions remaining, the original MOP630 million “seem unlikely to be enough anymore.” Meanwhile, a deadline answer was left to Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Raimundo do Rosário, to be provided at a later date.
Lawmaker Sio Chi Wai said that, “although some polemics in society seem to agree that there is a need for the [infectious diseases] building,” he thinks that government should disclosure more detailed information about the project. “I think the government is doing the right thing but maybe the population needs more information,” he said regarding the many concerns raised by neighboring residents.
Tam replied that authorities took the initiative to engage in dialogue with several entities and with the public in general as well as the media. “I held 21 sessions to clarify [the safety] of this building already,” he added, concluding: “To continue to delay is to waste time which can carry serious consequences.”
Angela Leong was another of the lawmakers calling for “more transparency” in order to “clear all doubts and concerns from the population.” She added concerns regarding the protection of the “section of the old city walls” and raised questions about the differences between the unit that the government proposes to build by the side of CHCSJ and the building that will be built in the Islands Complex.
The secretary explained that the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) visited the “old city walls” two years ago and has undertaken protection and consolidation works, guaranteeing that “the wall will not be affected.”
As for the unit intended for inclusion in the Islands Health Complex, Tam said it would be “more related to different and more serious cases like radioactivity contamination and biochemical attacks.”
Another of the guarantees left by Tam was that the building was perfectly safe and would following the highest standards that exist within this field.
“It is not us saying that it is safe, it is all the experts – from China and from the World Health Organization – that are saying this. We are following the strict criteria from these organizations. We have even stricter standards than the USA,” Tam said.
The secretary further reminded lawmakers that U.S. standards require a distance of 25 meters between an Infectious Disease building and other residential buildings while Macau is adhering to a gap of about 30 meters.

chan iek lap supports plan

Chan Iek Lap was one of the lawmakers showing support for the plan “Some people are treating the [infectious diseases] building like a leprosarium, trying to push it as far as possible from population. This is wrong thinking,” said the medically trained lawmaker, who graduated at Jinan University. “This is not a place for people to await their death. This is to save and heal people. […] “We must think what is more valuable: landscapes or peoples’ lives.”