On 20 December 2024, 62-year old Sam Hou Fai will become Macao’s sixth-term chief executive (CE), following his landslide victory as the sole candidate in October’s CE election. With his appointment on the horizon, the incoming leader has been busy laying the groundwork for his new government.
Today, the former judge turned politician announced the main officials in his cabinets – Secretary for Administration and Justice, André Cheong Weng Chon; Secretary for Economy and Finance, Tai Kin Ip; Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak; Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, O Lam; and the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Raymond Tam Vai Man.
While the full list of Sam’s cabinet appointments has yet to be unveiled, the CE-elect’s choices for senior officials underscore a focus on continuity and experience, with all the selected candidates being career civil servants. Read on to find out more about these picks.
Secretary for Administration and Justice: André Cheong Weng Chon
Born in Beijing in 1966, Cheong will retain his post as the secretary for administration and justice from the current Ho government. As the number two in the SAR government, Cheong holds decades of experience in the public sector, having served as the head of the legal affairs bureau between 2000 and 2014, as well as the commissioner of Macao’s anti-corruption watchdog between 2014 and 2019.
Secretary for Economy and Finance: Tai Kin Ip
Born in Macao in 1968, Tai began working in the Economic and Technological Development Bureau (known by its Portuguese initials DSEDT) in 1995, where he served as a senior technician and the director of the office of research. Between February 2000 and March 2016, the public servant was the deputy head of the DSEDT before being given his current position as the department’s chief in April 2016. Tai will succeed Lei Wai Nong as the SAR’s economic tsar.
Secretary for Security: Wong Sio Chak
Born in Guangdong in 1968, Wong is another holdover from the Ho government, retaining his position as the secretary for security. The civil servant has extensive experience in managing law and order in Macao, having served in senior positions in the Judiciary Police, as well as Public Prosecution Office during the late 1990s and 2000s. In 2014, he began serving as the SAR’s secretary for security under the Chui Sai On government and was retained for the position by Ho Iat Seng in 2019.
Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture: O Lam
Born in Guangdong in 1974, O will succeed Ao Ieong U, who has been appointed commissioner of audit. Early in her political career, O was involved with the Sports Bureau, although she later moved to other posts such as advisor to the chief executive’s office, which she held from 2009 to 2019, and deputy chairperson of the urban services department in 2020. She is currently acting as the vice-president of the municipal councils.
Secretary for Transport and Public works: Raymond Tam Vai Man
Born in Macao in 1960, Tam is the current head of the Environmental Protection Bureau, a post that he was appointed to in 2016. Prior to that, he served in various roles within the SAR government, including the acting head of the Municipal Affairs Bureau between 1999 and 2001, as well as the head of the administration committee of the now defunct Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau. As well, Tam led the Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau between 2017 and 2018. As Macao’s new Secretary for Transport and Public works, Tam will be taking over from Raimundo Arrais do Rosário.
Other key appointments include:
- Adriano Marques Ho, currently the Director of the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, will take on a new role as the Director-General of the Macao Customs Service.
- Leong Man Cheong will remain in his current role as the Commissioner General of the Unitary Police Service.
- Chan Tsz King, currently the Commissioner Against Corruption, will assume the new role of Prosecutor-General.
- Ao Ieong Seong, currently the Assistant Commissioner Against Corruption, will be appointed as the Commissioner Against Corruption
