Macau, China, 13 Jul – The future Chief Executive of Macau vowed Saturday to regulate the city’s gambling business better to avoid excessive competition and diversify the economic base.
Fernando Chui Sai On, who will officially replace Chief Executive Edmund Ho Hau Wah in December, also said he will build 19,000 public housing flats by 2012 and develop the conference and exhibition industry.
Chui Sai On said he will uphold the “people-oriented” idea by reforming the Macau government and creating more jobs for the locals.
The future Chief Executive of Macau also said he would consider reviving an investment immigration scheme that was suspended two years ago and.
The former investment immigration scheme, which was suspended in 2007, might be widened to cover people with the knowledge and skills needed by Macau, according to Chui Sai-on.
“There should be a scheme to bring in talent which does not just look at whether people have money. There should be criteria including education.”
He revealed details of his policy platform at a forum attended by most of the 300-member Election Committee who will formally elect him on July 26.
Chui, who is from one of the richest families in Macau, had secured the backing of 286 out of the 300 committee members.
Being only a general outline of his future policy, the platform comprises four parts concerning the negative impact of global financial crisis, the quality of local people’s life, the diversification of local economy, and the reform of the Macau’s government.
Among different topics, Chui dedicated a large part of his platform to the enhancement of local people’s life quality, which, he said, will be based on the “people-oriented” idea.
The former secretary for social affairs and culture of the Macau government promised in his platform to focus on improving the standard of Macau’s social welfare, housing, health, culture, education, environment, and the like, if he is elected as the next Chief Executive.
As for Macao’s gaming industry, which is the pillar of local economy, Chui said in his platform that he will not only regulate the industry’s development pace and direction, maintaining local gaming sector’s competitiveness in Asia, but revise and optimize the gaming law, so as to create a better environment for companies to do their business.
“We should better regulate the operation of gaming businesses and set up a fair mechanism for competition,” he told members of the committee.
Addressing the integrity issues, Chui said he and his future administration will make effort to reform the Macau’s governing system once elected, promoting the opening-up of governmental affairs, and enhancing the transparency of policy-making.
The future Chief Executive also dismiss concerns over a potential conflict of interest, given his family’s background in business.
Chui Sai On said his family members always followed Macau laws.
“My family has been living in Macau for six generations … They do things in accordance with the laws,” he said.
Chui Sai On also said he had always been careful to avoid any conflict of interest as Macau’s secretary.
“If I get elected, I will absolutely not let power corrupt my mind,” he said.
(MacauNews)
