Court rejects appeals on land confiscation

The Court of Second Instance (TSI), announced yesterday that it rejected the appeals of two land concessionaires regarding cases of land parcels being reclaimed by the government due to expiration of the concessions.

The two decisions favor the ground clearance ordered by the Secretary for Transport and Public Works.

The two land plots in question are both located on Taipa Island, the first in Pac On landfill zone (lot V2) of 2,637 square meters and the second in Avenida Kwong Tung (lot BT8) with an area of 3,177 square meters.

The orders made by the Chief Executive (CE) in May and September 2015 respectively to declare the concessions invalid were followed by the Secretariat for Transport and Public Works claiming the plots back and ordering the two companies to vacate the plots within a given timeframe.

The companies had presented appeals to the TSI on the basis of being denied a right to a hearing before the eviction, the inability of the Secretary for Transport and Public Works to issue such orders, as well as the lack of reasoning for the eviction and the breach of the principle of impartiality in one of the cases, as Secretary Raimundo do Rosario has been involved with one of the companies in the past as an engineer,.

The TSI opposed all the aforementioned arguments put forward, giving rights to the government and ordering the former concession holders to proceed according to the orders given. RM