ALL local senior officials should be able to serve the territory after 1997, Chief Secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang said yesterday. In a ceremony to greet newly promoted senior officials Mrs Chan said: 'I believe that all the existing incumbents and the new appointees are able to fulfil the requirements laid down in the Basic Law.' In its latest reshuffle announced on Tuesday, the Government appointed more locals to the most senior ranks, including Donald Tsang Kam-yuen as Financial Secretary and Rafael Hui Si-yan as Secretary for Financial Services. Mrs Chan said all policy secretaries would be localised this year. However, senior Chinese officials were non-committal. Attending the National People's Congress in Beijing, Xinhua Director Zhou Nan said the Special Administrative Region's key officials had to be nominated by the Chief Executive and appointed by the central Government. 'We cannot approve any appointment for the central Government,' he said. He was also unhappy about what he described as the 'indirect way' the local branch of Xinhua had been notified of the reshuffle. Xinhua only learned about it from the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, which was informed by the British Embassy in Beijing. Mrs Chan highlighted the importance of strengthening civil servants' communications with China. 'I hope that I myself, and the other local policy secretaries can have more chances to visit China to get to know each other.' Mr Tsang, the Financial Secretary designate, will be visiting China next week but Mrs Chan has not officially been invited to visit China since she assumed office two years ago.