The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Mr Cheong Weng Chon, said today the Government had gone to the Court of Final Appeal to contest a lower court’s decision concerning a Taipa land plot.

Mr Cheong explained the reason for the Government decision when briefing the media on the sidelines of the Government’s National Day reception to mark the 71st anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

The earlier verdict, by the Court of Second Instance, concerned a Taipa land plot with a gross area of 24,498 square metres, located adjacent to, respectively, Estrada Almirante Magalhães Correia, Estrada da Ponta da Cabrita, and Avenida Padre Tomás Pereira. That court had recently ruled that the Government had to permit reversion of the undeveloped part of the land plot to the company that had contested the matter. The court also decided the Government had to compensate that company for previously depriving it of use of the land concerned.

The Secretary said the Government fully respected the court’s decision; nonetheless the Government had two major reasons in support of its approach to the Court of Final Appeal.

First, as far back as 1918, during the period of Portuguese administration, the public sector had paid for, and gazetted, use of the land plot. Thus, the Government considered it had ownership of the plot concerned. Second, the Government of the Macao Special Administrative Region doubted the authenticity of a notarial document signed in 1997 in Lisbon.

The Government was not required to make any compensation payment at this stage, as the legal procedure was still ongoing, Secretary Cheong added.

During the briefing for the media, Mr Cheong also talked about a recent report by the Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) concerning governmental loans to the now-defunct Viva Macau airline.

He said the Government had paid great attention to the report’s suggestions and advice regarding how to strengthen the operation of public-fund mechanisms; and the report’s observations on supervising and monitoring related spending from such funds. While pressing ahead with amendments to relevant laws, the Government would continue to step up supervision of funding procedures, under powers vested with it under existing legislation.

The Secretary and the Commissioner Against Corruption met on Tuesday (29 September) with officials from public-sector funds, in order to exchange views on respective approval procedures concerning applications for support, and subsequent supervision of use of such funds, noted Secretary Cheong.

In other comments, Mr Cheong offered his apologies regarding the person injured when cladding material on a wall fell down at hand-washing facilities within Hác-Sá Reservoir Country Park. Mr Cheong said the Municipal Affairs Bureau would report to him in his role as Secretary, after reviewing completely the safety of similar facilities. The incident indicated a deficiency in construction quality, and of supervision, as well as of acceptance mechanisms regarding construction, Mr Cheong stated. The Government might seek to take further action, including legal action, against the construction company, he added.

On another topic, raised by reporters, the Secretary said the Municipal Affairs Bureau had taken timely action in response to suggestions that some Mid-Autumn Festival lighting installations broached copyright issues, and would review such cases thoroughly.

The Government paid great attention to the issue of copyright, he stressed. The Government would provide further opportunities for local designers to create decorative products, on the understanding that such designers’ involvement fulfilled the Government’s administrative goal of streamlining its expenses, Mr Cheong added.