I return after three weeks in Portugal, where the Covid-19 pandemic already has (very) little impact on everyday life. In fact, in Europe, this is the feeling that proliferates. As we start moving further east, in Taipei, we are reminded of the nightmare the virus still poses for China. Upon arrival in Macau, an hour and a half waiting on the plane is for two things: mentally preparing ourselves for the quarantine period and praying that the disinfection of suitcases does not spoil the clothes, as has happened to so many people.
But the reality I found was much worse: a mother with five children, one of them strapped to her back, was forced to put her bags on the bus alone, without any help from the employees who simply looked at the lady’s distress. This woman, by the way, doesn’t speak English or Chinese – only Portuguese. However, she was not received by any employee who could help her. They spoke Chinese and worked hard in English, highlighting the region’s deficit in dealing with markets other than Chinese. The forms were in Chinese or English, showing the deterioration of the bilingual administration (I even asked for them in Portuguese for the lady but they told me they didn’t have them).
The first two hours at the airport were spent in a room without air conditioning in the middle of summer. The last six were to help the lady deal with the abandonment she was subjected to. “I had no idea Macau would be like this. I am very underwhelmed.”
In the end, Macau can prepare what it wants today and it has to be tomorrow – an international, attractive city that invites foreign talent.
We are a long way from that, despite the Government’s measures and intentions pointing in that direction.
It is not enough to implement the obvious, the Government must know the specific (evident) gaps and fill them as soon as possible. Because the winds of change demand that this page turn be quick and well done. There are things that not even the pandemic justifies.
*Executive Director of PLATAFORMA
