In its campaign platform for the upcoming direct legislative election, the Macau-Guangdong Union (UMG) list, the No.1 on the ballot paper, says that it would urge the local government to come up with measures to tackle the various issues concerning welfare benefits and health services that local senior citizens who retire to Guangdong are facing.
The list’s political platform for the September 12 election comprises five major aspects, namely daily life matters, health services, food safety, housing, and traffic.
Incumbent lawmaker-cum-building contractor Mak Soi Kun, who had headed the Macau-Guangdong Union list in previous direct elections, does not seek re-election this time. Consequently, the list is headed by incumbent legislator Zheng Anting, 47, for the upcoming direct election, the second-ranked candidate of the list in the direct election four years ago. Zheng is a businessman.
The Macau-Guangdong Union list first ran in the legislature’s direct election in 2009, when Mak was elected. In the 2013 election, the list won two seats – Mak and Zheng.
In the 2017 direct election, the list won the highest number of votes, at 17,214, enabling Mak and Zheng to be re-elected.
The Macau-Guangdong Union candidacy list has been set up by the Macau Jiangmen Communal Society, of which Mak and Zheng are senior board members.
For the upcoming direct election, the Macau-Guangdong Union list comprises 11 candidates.
This time, the list’s number-two candidate is Lo Choi In, a senior bank executive.
Lo, 48, has been a candidate of the Macau-Guangdong Union list since the 2013 direct election.
Concerning daily life matters, the list’s campaign platform calls for the government to strengthen its support for the unemployed and underemployed, enhance welfare benefits for seniors, and promote patriotic education. In addition, the platform focuses on measures to help Macau participate in the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA).
Moreover, the platform calls for an increase in the amount of the government’s annual health vouchers and strengthened supervision of food safety.
Currently, the health vouchers for permanent residents amount to 600 patacas each.
The platform also urges the government to accelerate the construction of public housing estates and improve their construction quality.
The candidacy list also calls for the acceleration of the Light Rail Transit’s (LRT) development, pledging that it will continue pushing for more relaxed measures for local vehicles to travel between Macau and the mainland.
The number-one and number-two candidates of the Macau-Guangdong Union (UMG) direct-election list, Zheng Anting (right) and Lo Choi In, wave at a service centre run by the Macau Jiangmen Communal Society, of which the candidacy list is the electoral vehicle, in Rua da Ribeira do Patane shortly after the start of the election campaign at 00:00 on Saturday. Photo: UMG
