PSP: Officers caught smoking not breaching the rules, scrutiny on UM party

The Public Security Police Force (PSP) has stated that a group of eight police officers caught on amateur footage smoking together are not breaking any laws or rules. Accordingly, they will not be punished.

During yesterday’s press briefing from the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Center, the representative of the force, Ma Chio Hong, reaffirmed a statement issued earlier by the PSP explaining that the footage was not captured in a public space but an area of a police station located in the ZAPE area.

According to Ma, the officers were exercising their right to smoke in an open-air area that had been demarcated at the station for many years for such a purpose. Accordingly, the space is not a public space but rather a private area.

Responding to several inquiries from the media on the topic, Ma said that despite the actions portrayed in the footage not being illegal and not constituting any breach of the rules, the PSP has issued an internal warning for all staff members to avoid gathering in that area and to keep a safe distance from each other when smoking.

“We have made improvements and are now imposing a limitation on the number of people who can gather at the same time in that area,” Ma said.

In response to an inquiry about whether the actions of the police officers could increase the chances of an outbreak more than the actions that led to the prosecution of a total of 27 people, so far, for breaching the infectious diseases law, the same official said that the force does not wish the matter to be treated as a “witch hunt” or a case of “double standards between the police and the rest of the population,” noting that the officers have been “working very hard to ensure the safety of the whole population” during the Covid-19 pandemic and specifically during the outbreaks.

Ma also noted that a direct comparison with the cases of people being prosecuted for smoking in the streets cannot be made as the officers were in a private facility and not in a public area.

Of the 27 cases of people prosecuted for breaking the law, a large majority relate to people not wearing facemasks properly while smoking in public spaces.

UM party under 

investigation

In relation to a party or celebration that allegedly took place over the weekend at the University of Macau (UM), the PSP said they had received a report from UM and are in the process of investigating whether the gathering broke any local laws.

Ma said that the university has also opened an internal investigation into the case and “they will act with zero tolerance” in response to any rule-breaking.

The coordinator at the local Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Leong Iek Hou also noted that they have been informed that UM has already reported the case and has told all staff members about the need to strictly enforce the measures imposed by the government. We are waiting on the outcomes from the PSP investigation in this case.

Commenting on the case, Leong also remarked on the need to wear a mask and maintain social distancing. These protocols apply to everyone but specifically those working during this period of confinement.

 “It is and has always been a part of our principles which we have been insisting on [to prevent the transmission of Covid-19] and these principles must be applied at all times,” the health official said.