The Chief Executive Electoral Affairs Commission (CAEAL) announced on Wednesday that it has accepted Sam Hou Fai as the sole candidate for next month’s chief executive election.
The commission announced its decision in a notice released through the Macau Government Information Bureau (GCS) on Wednesday.
The notice also lists the 386 members of the 400-strong Chief Executive Election Committee who have formally endorsed (“nominated”) Sam as a chief executive candidate. Sam was the only person who had submitted his nomination form – including his 386 endorsements – to the Electoral Affairs Commission. Sam has been endorsed by 96.5 percent of the chief executive electors.
According to the notice, the Electoral Affairs Commission completed on Tuesday its eligibility review of Sam’s chief executive candidature application. The commission concluded its review after the Macau Special Administrative Region’s (MSAR) Committee for Safeguarding National Security had assessed and affirmed Sam’s candidacy, namely in terms of his upholding of the MSAR Basic Law and his loyalty to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and its MSAR.
The notice pointed out that, according to the Chief Executive Election Law, nominated candidates and members of the Chief Executive Election Committee may lodge objections within one day of the Electoral Affairs Commission announcing its decision on the eligibility of the nominated candidates. If no objections are received within the period, the notice underlined, a follow-up notice will be released today to announce the final chief executive candidature list.
Sam, 62, is the former president of Macau’s top court, the Court of Final Appeal (TUI). He resigned from his position as the MSAR’s chief judge in late August so that he could run in the October 13 chief executive election. He had held the position since the establishment of the MSAR on December 20, 1999. He speaks Cantonese, Putonghua, Portuguese and English. Observers have described him as “down to earth” and “principled”.
Born in Guangdong Province, Sam was admitted to Peking University’s Law School in 1981 and worked as a lawyer in Guangzhou before moving to Macau in 1986, where he became a judicial auditor and one of Macau’s first local trainee judges when the territory was still under temporary administration by Portugal. He was appointed by Edmund Ho Hau Wah – the MSAR’s first chief executive – president of the Court of Final Appeal on December 20, 1999, aged 37. At that time, he was reportedly the world’s youngest chief judge. Edmund Ho, now vice-chairman of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, has publicly backed Sam’s candidacy.
According to the MSAR Basic Law and the Chief Executive Election Law, candidates in the chief executive election must be at least 40 years old, be a permanent local resident, hold Chinese nationality, do not have the right of abode in a foreign country, and must have “habitually” lived in Macau for at least 20 years.
The 400-member Chief Executive Election Committee comprises both members elected by a wide range of community associations and ex-officio members – Macau’s 12 deputies to the National People’s Congress (NPC).
The chief executive election by secret ballot will be held at the Forum Macao Complex on Sunday, October 13. By law, all elections in Macau must be held on a Sunday.
Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng announced on August 21 that for health reasons he would not seek a second five-year term. A chief executive can only serve two consecutive terms.
Sam is set to become the MSAR’s fourth head of government, i.e., chief executive, after Edmund Ho and Fernando Chui Sai On, each of whom served two consecutive five-year terms, and Ho Iat Seng’s single term which ends at midnight on December 19, 2024.
The new chief executive and the MSAR’s other principal officials are slated to be sworn in on December 20, 2024. A national leader is expected to pay an inspection visit to Macau at that time and to preside over the swearing-in ceremony.
Sam is slated to announce his election campaign manifesto on Saturday, September 28.
Sam meets with European chamber, returned Overseas Chinese reps
Meanwhile, Sam yesterday met with top representatives from the Macau European Chamber of Commerce (MECC), his election campaign office said in a statement yesterday.
The meeting was held at Sam’s election campaign office in Nam Tung Commercial Building in Nam Van.
According to the statement, the MECC representatives who attended yesterday’s meeting with Sam included the chamber’s president Rui Pedro Cunha and vice-president Carlos Álvares.
The representatives raised opinions on topics such as Macau’s economic diversification, public administration, regional cooperation, an increase in the number of international air passenger routes, and the setting-up of more science and technology research centres.
In addition, the statement said, the representatives also expected Sam’s administration to study the feasibility of streamlining the government’s administrative formalities assessing and approving applications for licences to run a business.
During the meeting, the statement said, the representatives also expressed confidence in Macau’s investment prospects.
According to the statement, Sam encouraged European businesses to make better use of Macau’s business service platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries with the aim of strengthening Macau’s international cooperation and promoting the city’s prosperity.
Meanwhile, a separate statement yesterday said that Sam met with representatives from the Macau General Association of Real Estate at his election campaign office on Tuesday afternoon.
The representatives who attended Tuesday’s meeting with Sam included the association’s chairman Chong Sio Kin.
According to the statement, the representatives briefed Sam about the current structural problem of Macau’s real estate sector and its expected future development trend.
Meanwhile, another statement yesterday said that Sam paid a visit to the headquarters of the Macau Returned Overseas Chinese Association on Tuesday afternoon where he listened to opinions raised by 10 representatives of the association.
The representatives who attended the meeting included the association’s chairman Lao Nga Wong.
The representatives raised opinions on topics such as improving governance transparency, streamlining public administration formalities, boosting community businesses, and strengthened Macau-Hengqin integrated development.
Meanwhile, Sam’s campaign office representatives met with members of the Macau Legal System Research Association yesterday morning.
This handout photo provided by the Sam Hou Fai Election Campaign Office yesterday shows Sam (front, centre) posing on the sidelines of yesterday’s meeting at his campaign office in Nam Van with representatives from the Macau European Chamber of Commerce (MECC) such as its president Rui Pedro Cunha (front, third from left).
