Parliamentary committee ponders sandwich-class housing role in overall policy

The parliamentary committee responsible for the sandwich-class housing bill has requested clarification on the relation between the types of housing and the overall housing policy.

Yesterday, the committee held a press conference after the first meeting discussing the bill. The media event was led by committee president, Vong Hin Fai and secretary Leong Sun Iok.

The lawmakers revealed that yesterday’s meeting covered articles one to 11. Members of the committee were mostly concerned with the goal of the legislation, according to the local paper the Macao Daily News. They even compared the bill to the Economic Housing Law and noted that the target of the bill was stated as “helping Macau SAR residents.” The lawmakers demanded a clarification from the government on the lack of an unambiguous goal.

Meanwhile, the committee members also wondered why the government had copied the same provision about the use of the housing units directly from the Economic Housing Law.

The lawmakers pointed out that technically, sandwich-class housing is privately owned, although it cannot be resold, leased or used by non-owners with compensation during the first 16 years after acquisition.

They queried why only the owners and their core household members will be permitted to reside in the units, but not extended household members or friends, hinting that a visiting friend who stays the night may incur a penalty for the owner.