Wong Wan said to leave post as DSAT head

The Transport Bureau (DSAT) chief, Wong Wan, will leave his post in May. He has not renewed his current contract, according to a Radio Macau broadcast yesterday. However, the bureau told The Times it would not confirm the report at this time.
Mr Wong has served as DSAT head since the bureau’s creation in 2008. He has allegedly requested not to renew his current contract, which expires in May.
Last week, the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Raimundo do Rosário was asked about Mr Wong’s future within DSAT, but he did not clarify whether changes are underway in the bureau’s leadership. Mr Rosário stated that he would soon make a decision on the matter, stressing that he was pleased with Mr Wong’s performance.
Improvements in the traffic flow and the city’s overall transportation system were among Macau citizens’ top concerns, according to a report released by the government’s Policy Research Office last year. Among 111,246 opinions and suggestions collected during Chief Executive Chui Sai On’s campaign, a total of 87,425 were concerned with traffic issues.
In recent years, Mr Wong and DSAT have been under fire for failing to solve major transportation issues in Macau. Residents complain of packed buses and dreadful traffic jams, as well as criticizing taxi drivers’ behavior and the insufficient number of taxis.
Last November, DSAT and Vang Iek Radio Taxi, the company operating dial-a-cab services, failed to reach an agreement, which prompted the so-called yellow taxis to bid Macau’s streets farewell. The company and the government’s attempt to renew their contract failed, with Vang Iek’s request to introduce an additional fee for dial-a-cab services going unapproved by Macau’s administration.
Vang Iek used to operate 100 taxis, 60 of which provided only dial-a-cab services, while 40 offered regular services.
Another major controversy was triggered by Reolian’s bankruptcy in 2013. In 2009, Reolian was granted three main bus routes in a much-criticized bid while TCM, another bus operator, was granted a license despite allegedly delivering its tender four minutes past the deadline. Reolian would later be asked to release part of its awarded routes to TCM.
After commencing operations, Reolian faced several other challenges, from high operating costs to manpower shortages and the government’s refusal to pay for a contractual annual fee adjustment related to inflation.
In 2013, the Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) slammed Macau’s bus operation scheme, describing it as “the most severe case of legal breach” and therefore affecting public interest. CCAC accused DSAT of allowing the city’s three bus operators to operate illegally, as none of the companies had signed proper concession contracts, instead signing mere “service-rendering contracts.”
Last year, Mr Wong told lawmakers at a Legislative Assembly plenary meeting that he is the main government official accountable for issues relating to the bus operation system. CP