Long-time public servants Chao Wai Ieng and Mak Kim Meng have been sworn in as administration committee chairman and vice chairman of the Municipal Affairs Bureau (known by its Portuguese initials IAM). Both men emphasised they would uphold “people-oriented”principles in their new roles, according to a statement issued by IAM.
Cheong Weng Chon, the secretary for administration and justice, administered the swearing-in. At the ceremony last week, he described the SAR’s 25th anniversary – celebrated on 20 December – as “a moment of transition from the old to the new” regarding municipal work.
Cheong urged Chao and Mak to improve the quality of municipal services currently offered to the public by adopting “new attitudes.” He also encouraged them to help Macao live up to the description President Xi Jinping recently gave it: “a pearl on the palm of the motherland.”
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In his speech, Chao said he was prepared to assume responsibility for reforming IAM’s “management philosophy” in accordance with new Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai’s policy vision. Chao took over the chairman role from José Maria da Fonseca Tavares, who announced his retirement last month.
Formerly director of the Identification Services Bureau, Chao holds a law degree from University of Macau, as well as an engineering degree from a university in Taiwan. He has been a public servant since 2003, occupying numerous roles including chief investigator in the Commission Against Corruption and consultant to the Office of the Secretary for Administration and Justice.
Mak also holds law and engineering degrees, from Guangzhou’s Sun Yat-Sen University and Fujian’s Huaqiao University, respectively. He joined the public service in 1987 and his previous roles have included heading the Department of Public Roads and Drainage.
