Briefs | 18th Macau Food Festival to kick off on November 9 

The 18th Macau Food Festival will be held from November 9 until November 25. The 17-day food festival will, this year, adopt new payment methods. Local residents will be able to use Quick Pass, while mainland visitors can use other popular mainland payment methods, including WeChat Pay. Previously, visitors had to use cash coupons in order to pay for food. This year, the food festival will again feature gastronomy from other countries, which will be mixed in with aspects of the Greater Bay Area.  More than 100 local food brands have been invited to participate in this year’s food festival.

Plans to reclaim water plant suspended

The Marine and Water Bureau has revealed plans to reclaim the water plant construction site were suspended. In a reply to lawmaker Lam Lon Wai’s written inquiry, the marine authority said that the suspension is taking place because the government has to take care of other important livelihood projects first. With this consideration, the government decided to temporarily suspend the plan. According to the Marine authority, in 2017, the city’s average daily household water consumption was 157 liters, lower than the average in Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Taipei, Tokyo and Seoul.

IACM wants to expand location options for crematoria

The president of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM), José Tavares, has said that the department would not exclude the possibility of amending the city’s law in order to expand the selection of locations for crematoria. In its reply to lawmaker Sulu Sou’s inquiry (submitted in July) regarding the city’s selection of crematoria locations, José Tavares noted that IACM has continued to discuss locations with the Land, Public Works and Transport (DSSOPT). “Building crematoria is an important aspect of [Macau’s] overall immune system. It is necessary. The government and residents should discuss the topic objectively,” José Tavares said. When asked whether the government would introduce promession, José Tavares said that it would begin to consider environmentally friendly burial technologies once they become mature and dependable.

Petition calling for reducing plastic usage submitted

Yesterday, five residents delivered a petition to the government headquarters urging the government to determine a solution for plastic waste. The petition was signed by 4,700 people. One of the creators, surnamed Lao, commented that there is a serious problem in Macau concerning single-use plastics, and that the majority of plastic waste is not recyclable. “We do not need this much plastic in our lives,” said Lao. Currently, Macau shops are still not charging for plastic bags. Lao hopes that the government can speed up the legislative process towards reducing the use of plastic.

Rickshaw union denies misappropriation

The Macao Pedicab Drivers Union claimed that it has not misappropriated government subsidies. Earlier this week, a group of pedicab drivers complained about the union having misappropriated subsidies granted by the government. Subsidies, consisting of an amount ranging between MOP60,000 and MOP70,000, was received by the union on a monthly basis for distribution to drivers. The subsidy was given to the union as part of a pedicab promotional project conducted by both the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and the union. The union denied misappropriating the subsidies and said that it has already reported the case to the police. According to the union, MGTO stopped the promotional project last July.

48 suspected illegal workers found in July

Yesterday, the Public Security Police Force (PSP) reported July’s illegal worker statistics, according to a statement released by the PSP. In July, the PSP together with the Labour Affairs Bureau and other governmental departments, inspected 438 locations (compared to 314 in June) for illegal workers. Construction sites, private residential buildings, commercial offices and industrial offices were among the locations inspected. In total, 48 suspected illegal workers were found, compared to 68 in June.  During the same period last year, the PSP and other governmental departments inspected 445 locations and found 71 suspected illegal workers.

China eases process for issuing, renewing passports

The State Immigration Administration (SIA) announced several measures this week to simplify the process of issuing passports and travel documents to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan residents. From September 1, citizens will be able to apply for or renew passports and travel documents to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan from anywhere, regardless of where their household registration is, the SIA said in the statement. Processing times will be reduced to seven working days, according to the statement. Tourists traveling to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan in groups can also apply for travel permissions from places other than their household registration locality. Since being founded in April, the SIA has launched several policies to facilitate cross-border travel, such as shortening waiting times for citizens crossing the border and offering visa-free access to tourists of 59 countries into Hainan Province.