Macau Legislative Assembly (AL) President Kou Hoi In reaffirmed yesterday that the local legislature is fully committed to protecting and defending the nation’s sovereignty, security and development interests.
Kou made the remarks in a speech during a Spring Festival luncheon hosted by the legislature for local journalists and correspondents working for media enterprises in the mainland, Hong Kong and Portugal. Macau Government Information Bureau (GCS) Director Inês Chan Lou also attended the luncheon held at MGM MACAU.
Kou, a businessman and Macau’s only member of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), underlined that the 33-member legislature passed the government’s national security and state secrets protection amendment bills during the second legislative session of its 7th legislative term, which ended on October 15 last year, during which it passed a total of 22 bills and held 34 plenary meetings.
Kou stressed that the legislature has always considered the defence of national sovereignty, national security and the nation’s development interests as its “guiding principles” as far as its legislative work is concerned.
He also said that the legislature remains determined to promote the principle of “Macau governed by patriots”.
The veteran lawmaker, who has been a member of the Legislative Assembly since 1991, also pointed out that this year is of “special significance for Macau,” considering that it marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR), as well as the 3rd anniversary of the establishment of the Guangdong-Macau In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.
Kou thanked the Central People’s Government as well as the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government and the Foreign Ministry Commissioner’s Office in Macau for always supporting the local legislature’s work. He also expressed his gratitude to the local government headed by Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng for its “sincere cooperation” with the legislature and for “supporting our work”.
He also said that since Macau’s return to the motherland in December 1999, the Legislative Assembly has always strictly complied with the Macau Basic Law and upheld the principle of “One Country, Two Systems” by “firmly defending” the nation’s sovereignty, security and development interests.
Kou acknowledged that this year’s legislative agenda involves an “arduous workload”.
Macau Legislative Assembly (AL) President Kou Hoi In addresses yesterday’s Spring Festival luncheon hosted by the legislature at MGM MACAU in Nape. – Photo: Ginnie Liang
