Lam Hin San (left) and Raimundo do Rosário
Lam Hin San, the former head of a Civil Aviation Authority department, was formally initiated as the new director of the Transport Bureau yesterday. The brand-new bureau head, who comes equipped with years of experience in aeronautical engineering, pledged to “do his job well” and to “listen to citizens’ voices more”.
The Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Raimundo do Rosário, who officiated at the new director’s inaugural ceremony, admitted to the media that serving in local public agencies is a challenging job. “This position, as you all know, is stressful, as it’s influential in everyone’s daily life,” remarked the Macanese secretary. “To assume this post is an act of great courage under the current circumstances.”
During the induction ceremony, Rosário mentioned in his speech that Lam faces multiple challenges as director of DSAT. “Some of the problematic factors are the large number of vehicles required for such a small territory, a public bus service that needs to be constantly adjusted due to the large number of users, and a taxi service that needs to improve its service quality in order to have a positive impact on Macau’s image,” he said.
Asked if his new job would pose challenges to him because of his lack of direct experience in the land transportation sector, Lam, who joined the aviation department in 1995 as a senior technician and had progressed to head of the Airport Infrastructure and Air Navigation department, said that both sectors required a focus on citizens’ safety and he was confident that he could bring to the region a “high-quality transportation service.”
“Currently what’s important is to listen to more opinions from different parts of society, as when decisions impact on citizens’ livelihoods, it is important to consider every detail. What I will do is prepare some plausible schemes, and set out some trial points. We will announce and gradually implement the schemes after a careful consideration of society’s opinions,” he said.
According to the new bureau head, more short-term, mid-length and long-term approaches to Macau’s traffic issues will be announced in the future, chiefly involving the revision of current regulations, public transportation and car parking options.
Wong Wan, Lam’s predecessor, faced a steady stream of opposition before he finally left the post in May. The new bureau head has already braced himself for criticisms from society, saying that he would accept any challenges as it was his “dream to serve the region.” “How citizens see me is important, yet I think that when one is serving citizens as a civil servant, it’s legitimate to receive their criticisms,” said Lam.
A double-degree holder in civil engineering and Chinese law, Lam has also completed two Master’s degrees in public administration and civil engineering. In addition, he chairs a workgroup at the International Civil Aviation Organization that has been responsible for airport operation and planning in the Asia-Pacific region since 2013.
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