Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On said on Sunday that Mao Zedong was a “great revolutionary, strategist and theorist” and the main founder and “remarkable” leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Chui made the remarks in a speech at the opening ceremony of the “Mao Zedong Emerged in China” exhibition of photographs of the “extraordinary life” of the late chairman (1893-1976) at the Macau Handover Gifts Museum in Nape.
In his speech, Chui also said that Mao contributed in an ardent and remarkable way to the nation’s independence and rejuvenation, “as well as the liberation and happiness of the Chinese people.”
The chief executive added that Mao’s “grandiose merits have been engraved in history and will forever be remembered by the whole nation.”
Chui also said that since its return to the motherland 20 years ago, “Macau has shared with the whole nation the dignity and glory of the noble motherland and has been able to achieve rapid and efficient development on the nation’s speed train.
“We must not forget who dug the well when we drink its water,” Chui said allegorically, adding that “it is on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the New China and the 20th anniversary of Macau’s return to the motherland and with the greatest respect that we pay homage to the great leader and founder of the New China by holding this photo exhibition”.
Chui said the exhibition would enable Macau people to learn about the “grandiose deeds and extraordinary life of the founder of the New China”. The chief executive also said he believed that the exhibition would “significantly stimulate the patriotic sentiment of the population in general” and strengthen the ideal of “loving the nation and loving Macau.
Chui also said that during his life Mao was always guided by the concept of “heartily serving the people”.
The chief executive expressed his sincere gratitude to the Central People’s Government Liaison Office in Macau for its “strong support and cooperation” in setting up the exhibition.
Liaison Office Director Fu Ziying and Foreign Ministry Commissioner Shen Beili were present at Sunday’s opening ceremony, which was also attended by Chui’s predecessor, Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee Vice Chairman Edmund Ho Hau Wah. According to the Macau Post Daily, Fu also delivered a speech at the ceremony.
The exhibition is open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. until Sunday. Next Monday, it is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free.
