Transport Bureau (DSAT) chief, Lam Hin San, has stressed that the recent public tender process for 500 taxi licences was undertaken transparently and in accordance with regulations.
His remarks follow a complaint that a legislator filed to the Macao Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) last week, questioning the integrity of the tender process.
In a statement to the media during yesterday’s Walk for a Million, Lam said that the bureau had performed “all the tendering and assessment works in accordance with the law, so that all the new taxis could be put into service as soon as possible.”
[See more: Cabbies want a fare hike, while bidders query the integrity of the latest licence tender]
The complaints originated from a number of disgruntled bidders who complained to legislator Lam U Tou about what they said were irregularities, including the allegedly improper sealing of tender documents. They also protested the lack of independent oversight of the process, which was only monitored by DSAT officials.
In response to the allegations, the DSAT chief said “If you have enough evidence, some leaked information to tell…please report it to the regulator.”
CCAC head Chan Tsz King stated yesterday that his department had received a complaint from a lawmaker but not from any bidders or related parties.
Chan mentioned that the CCAC would conduct an assessment of the complaint before it would consider launching a formal investigation.
In a bid to boost the number of taxis on Macao’s streets, DSAT recently launched a public tender for 10 taxi licences, with each one allowing the winning company to operate a maximum of 50 taxis.
40 bids were submitted, but only 21 applications were submitted, with the approved submissions ranging between 2.5 million to 3.8 million patacas.
—With reporting by Kenny Fong
