Court rejects information request over CCAC Land Law investigation

The Administrative Court (TA) has rejected a request by a land concessionaire company for information on an on-going Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) investigation over several land concession expirations.

In 2018 the former Chief Executive, Fernando Chui Sai On, mandated the CCAC to carry out an investigation over 74 land concessions declared as invalid under the Land Law enforced, with a final report yet to be published.

One of the involved companies, Sociedade de Investimento Imobiliário Fu Keng Van, S.A., filed a motion with TA for information to be provided on the on-going investigation and on a possible deadline for its conclusion.

The company stated that as the concessionaire of one of the plots involved it has a legitimate interest in knowing the current situation of said work and the conclusions reached by the CCAC, since the information in question is of interest to better evaluate the legal means for the exercise of the right to compensation, above all, in the action for effecting civil liability.

The company also indicated that it made an information request to the CCAC, but that it had never received any response or communication.

In its decision, the TA noted that since the CCAC is not part of the Public Administration organization, but a political body with its direct provision in the Basic Law of Macau, which operates independently and reports to the Chief Executive, then it was not covered by such an information request.

Sociedade de Investimento Imobiliário Fu Keng Van, S.A. is one of the companies linked to the ‘Fecho da Praia Grande’ development project in the Nam Vam Lake and that saw its land concession declared as invalid by the Macau SAR executive.