Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On said Sunday he had noticed different opinions about the performance of the Legislative Assembly Electoral Affairs Committee (CAEAL).
However, he insisted that the committee always acted in line with the law.
Chui made the remarks to reporters in the Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal before he left Macau for the 9th Pan-Pearl River Delta Co-operation Conference in Guiyang.
Asked by reporters for his comment on the criticisms that the government-appointed Legislative Assembly Electoral Affairs Committee was “acting retrospectively” and that itfailed to fulfil its obligations, Chui said that he had noticed different opinions about the committee.
Several electoral groups last week complained to the committee about its “unclear” guidelines about the display of campaign material such as posters and taxi advertising.
The Macau-Guangdong Union electoral group (UMG) said last week that the committee had failed to come up with clear guidelines about the display of campaign material, after the group’s campaign activities near the Red Market were stopped by two policemen last Sunday.
Two other electoral groups, Caring for Macau (CPM) and Alliance for Change (MUDAR), last week also slammed the committee’s guidelines regulating the display of campaign material as being “unclear” after the committee said in a statement that it was illegal for electoral groups to display campaign materials on public transport such as taxis and buses.
Meanwhile, disabled voters expressed their worries about their access to the polling stations and the secrecy of their votes after testing the dummy polling stations set up by the government last week.
“The opinions I have heard have not been as you [media] reported…generally speaking the public supports the committee to work in line with the law,” Chui said.
“I believe that the public supports the work of the committee. The committee releases information regularly and responds to questions [raised by electoral groups, media and residents.] I believe it will be a fair and just election. I hope Macau citizens will cast their votes on September 15,”Chui said. (macaunews)
