SAFP: recruitment process for legal officers ‘is just’

The results of a written exam for the recruitment of first rank second level legal officersa

The deputy director of the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP), Mr Kou Peng Kuan, has assured that the government recruitment exam for legal officers was conducted in an equal and just manner, although only one candidate out of over 500 applicants passed the test.
On the sidelines of a press conference held on Friday, Kou Peng Kuan said that there have not been any issues related to the recruitment exam. “We tried to recruit people based on equal, just [criteria], so that they are able to perform their duties in the legal domain of Macau’s Public Administration. Therefore, the demands [of the test] are in line with the work they would be performing on a daily basis as legal officers,” he told reporters.
SAFP released the results of a written exam for the recruitment of first rank second level legal officers last week, where out of 508 applicants only one candidate passed the examination while only 380 took the test, and five were disqualified.
The “survivor” of the exam had already been working as a civil servant in Macau. Kou Peng Kuan said that the recruitment examination was not too difficult. He also stressed that the jury assessing the papers “has extensive experience and conducted an in-depth analysis to prepare the exam questions.”
Lawmaker Song Pek Kei, who holds a law degree from the University of Macau, told the Times recently that some of the candidates had complained about the number of questions, as they found it difficult to answer all of them within the given timeframe.
Kou Peng Kuan did not reply to reporters’ questions on whether Macau’s administration fears difficulties in hiring legal officers in the future. Nevertheless, he said they will make improvements and launch another recruitment process for professionals in the legal sector. CP