Disgraced businessman Ng’s Hengqin venture unaffected by graft

Niu Jing

Local businessman Ng Lap Seng’s alleged case of bribery in the United States will not deter his ongoing investment project in the Zhuhai island of Hengqin, confirmed Niu Jing, the director-general of the administrative committee for the acclaimed island strip.
The head of the commission told media on the sidelines of the 20th MIF yesterday that the venture under Ng’s Sun Kian Ip Group remained intact in the Hengqin New Area, as the mainland regulator has commenced planning for the project.
“It didn’t affect the project itself much. This is among the projects recommended by the Macau government and it’s been running smoothly,” he revealed.
Of the total 33 developments that have successfully made their entry into the plot of around 106 square kilometers, only a couple of them are from the Portuguese-speaking countries, according to Niu.
However, those overseas ventures require third-party channels and platforms to be launched, which the mainland official said were still under establishment.
After being asked how much progress the initiatives of Macau-licensed ventures allowed to run on Hengqin land have made, Niu said that both local and mainland authorities were still “actively working on it,” although a timeline has yet to have been made available. The final scheme will determine, aside from private cars, what other sorts of locally-registered vehicles would be allowed.
Additionally, the recent announcement of the desire to expand circulation of patacas in Hengqin last month from the same official will take some time to materialize, as Niu said that the authorities on both sides were gradually moving in that direction.
As the biggest island in Zhuhai is turning itself into one of China’s most important economic districts, the commission head pledged to swiftly introduce more infrastructural developments into the area in the near future in response to rapid changes.
“The business and residential facilities will grow more and more in the following years, the living and working standard there will get better as well.” he claimed. “At that time, I think Hong Kong and Macau residents as well as the mainland business practitioners will welcome Hengqin more than ever, and be more willing to live their lives there.” AU