Mainland company to deliver handover fireworks show

A mainland fireworks company will be responsible for presenting this year’s fireworks display at the 20th anniversary of the Macau handover, according to director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO). MGTO’s director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes announced that Macau and Hengqin will present the fireworks show together. The company responsible for the firework show is “very experienced” in mainland China, with the MGTO head adding that the proposed preliminary plan for the show is “quite beautiful.” With the fireworks for the handover anniversary to be displayed over both Hengqin and Macau, the company proposed to launch the fireworks both from the sea and also from some of Macau’s buildings. However, the second suggestion is still being considered due to safety concerns and technological considerations.

Macau to have 4,200 CCTV surveillance cameras by 2028

Macau will have a total of 2,600 CCTV surveillance cameras by 2023 and 4,200 by 2028, according to the government’s 10-year plan for disaster prevention and reduction. The security authority is examining the installation of the fifth and sixth phases of CCTV surveillance cameras. In the fifth phase, the security authority will install 300 cameras near schools and bus stops. During the sixth phase, the government plans to install an additional 680 cameras near commercial facilities and other crowded public spaces. As for the plan to increase the number of cameras to 4,200, the Unitary Police Service said that, according to the mid-term plan, the government intends to add 1,600 surveillance cameras in the coastal area and the new urban zone, after which the number of cameras will be increased to 4,200.

DSEJ welcomes students’ opinions amid censorship rumor

Amid rumors of speech censorship, Education and Youth Affairs Bureau’s (DSEJ) acting director Gong Chi Meng says that the bureau welcomes students who wish to express their opinions on social issues. Recently, an online rumor was spread regarding some students being questioned by their schools after the students reposted articles involving comments on social issues, according to a report by TDM. Gong said he is unaware of any information and declined to comment on the matter. However, the DSEJ representative said that the education authority has always been focused on comprehensive education for students, and that DSEJ welcomes students who want to voice differing opinions on social issues. He believes that local teachers will guide students with neutrality.

Lawmaker asks about new center for disaster victims

Lawmaker Ella Lei has written an interpellation to the local government asking about the progress of the planned new center for disaster victims. In 2017, the local government said that the center will be located at the Ilha Verde affordable housing development, adding that the center was expected to be completed in 2019. Lei asked about the progress of the new center and the timetable for the center’s opening. She pointed out that the center is to provide emergency shelter for disaster victims, although it may not be used frequently. She emphasized that the center must also be cleaned on a daily basis and maintained. She asked about the management plan for the center and how the government will ensure its sanitation and further ensure that disaster victims can use the facilities immediately they need it.