Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On said Sunday that he will discuss with the central government the possibility of extending the opening hours of the Macau-Zhuhai border checkpoints during his trip to Beijing where he will be receiving his official appointment as Macau’s next chief executive from Premier Li Keqiang.
Chui made the comments at the local airport before he flew to Beijing.
Chui said that his government had already discussed the matter with the Guangdong provincial government a number of times, adding he hoped that the longer opening hours of the border crossings could start “as soon as possible”.
Currently, the Gongbei-Macau border checkpoint opens from 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. between Zhuhai and Macau. The Lotus Flower Bridge border checkpoint between Cotai and Hengqin is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., while the Inner Harbour-Wanzai ferry checkpoints only opens during the day.
When asked if he would discuss with the central government the appointments of his five policy secretaries and other principal officials for his next five-year term, Chui said that he hadn’t chosen anyone yet, reiterating that so far he had not discussed the appointments with anyone, even with the members of his top advisory body, the 10-member Executive Council (ExCo), and the Policy Research Office.
Chui said that according to the Basic Law, once he officially becomes the Chief Executive-designate after receiving his letter of appointment from Li today, he has to propose his policy secretaries and other principal officials to the central government for formal appointment.
He said he would only start the task after receiving his own appointment from the central government.
Including Chui, Macau has 13 principal officials.
After Chui arrived in Beijing, he reiterated to reporters that he had not yet chosen any of his new government’s team of top officials.
When asked if he would only report positive things to the central government during his trip, Chui said that he never only reports the good things.
“To be able to solve problems, [the government] has to accept criticism and face the problems, which is my belief, he said, adding “We have to face [and solve] the problems inherited from the past, the current problems and future problems”, he said.
Chui also said his government was always striving to tackle social problems based on the interests of the general public.
During his three-day stay, Chui and his entourage are staying at the Raffles Beijing Hotel. He’s scheduled to return to Macau on Wednesday.
Chui’s second term begins on December 20. (macaunews/macaupost)
