Secretary for Administration and Justice André Cheng Weng Chon has reaffirmed that Macao’s political system does not include the Western concept of separation of powers. Instead, its executive authorities, the legislature and the judiciary complement each other and exercise checks and balances of each other, but with the emphasis on a cooperative relationship between the three organs.
Cheong made the remarks during Friday’s regular Executive Council press conference when asked by reporters about the relationship between Macao’s executive, legislature and judiciary, amidst heated discussions on the topic of the separation of powers in Hong Kong in recent weeks.
Cheong noted that the Macao Basic Law clearly stipulates Macao’s political system, according to which the Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) exercises a high degree of autonomy and enjoys executive, legislative and independent judicial powers, including that of final adjudication.
Cheong said that Macao’s executive, legislative and judicial powers are exercised by their respective organs. The courts and the Public Prosecution exercise their judicial powers independently, while the executive authorities and the legislature have their own respective powers, Cheong said, adding that the three organs exercise their respective powers independently of each other in line with Macao’s laws.
Cheong underlined that the political system applied in the MSAR is an executive-led system in which the executive authorities, the legislature and the judiciary complement each other and exercise checks and balances on each other, but with the emphasis on cooperation between them.
The policy secretary said that Macao’s executive-led system is widely understood and recognised by Macao’s civil society, adding that the system in place has been effective since Macao’s return to the motherland, contributing to the city’s continuous development and stability.
Cheong said there is no doubt that the executive authorities will always continue to respect and implement rulings made by the judiciary.
(The Macau Post Daily/Macau News)
PHOTO © TDM
