Gov’t: Pearl Horizon case pending court verdict

The SAR Government says that since the Pearl Horizon case has now entered judicial proceedings, no decisions have been made due to a lack of lawful or factual basis, according to a statement issued yesterday by the office of the Secretary for Administration and Justice Sonia Chan Hoi Fan. The government said procedures in reclaiming those plots of land have already been launched according to relevant regulations in the Land Law.
The statement followed Pearl Horizon homeowners staging another protest demanding the land dispute between the government and developer be resolved. The organizer said around 2,000 people had joined the march from the Polytex office in Areia Preta to the Government Headquarters to hand in the petition, while chanting demands that they want to meet with the Chief Executive. The number of participant was put at 600 according to local police.
The developer, Polytex, said recently that they have already filed a lawsuit against the government alleging delays in issuing the requisite approvals for the construction of the residential project. The developer is still eyeing a completion date for Pearl Horizon of 2018 if it wins the lawsuit.
The government announced the decision to take back the 68,000 square metre site at the beginning of last month, saying that developer Polytex Corporation Ltd. had failed to complete the land use before the land concession expiry date.
Pearl Horizon, occupying a site known as Lot-P of Areia Preta on the Macau Peninsula, is designed to house 18 towers of a 5,000-plus residential unit complex. Over 3,000 of these units were sold off-plan before a brick was laid, according to the government’s earlier disclosure.
The government said in yesterday’s statement that they reiterated that they have been paying attention to the homeowners’ interests and demands. In addition, it says that regardless of the verdict the government would try its best to protect the interests of the homeowners in accordance with the law.