In a meeting held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, President Xi Jinping met with Sam Hou Fai, Macao’s newly elected chief executive on Friday.
During the meeting, Premier Li Qiang presented Sam with a decree of the State Council, officially appointing him as the sixth-term chief executive of Macao.
Sam Hou Fai, a native of mainland China and the first to hold the position, is slated to assume office as Macao’s chief executive on 20 December, following an uncontested election on 13 October.
President Xi congratulated Sam on his appointment, praising his firm stance on loving the country and Macao, as well as his contributions to Macao’s prosperity and stability during his tenure as President of Macao’s Court of Final Appeal.
Xi noted that Sam’s overwhelming majority win in the election demonstrated the broad recognition and support from Macao’s society, and that the central authorities have full trust in him.
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The President also highlighted the remarkable success of the “One Country, Two Systems” principle with Macao characteristics over the past 25 years since Macao’s return to China. He reiterated the central authorities’ commitment to fully and faithfully implementing this principle, allowing the people of Macao to administer Macao with a high degree of autonomy.
Xi urged Sam to fulfill his mission as chief executive by uniting various sectors of Macao society and continuously breaking new ground in the practice of “One Country, Two Systems” with Macao characteristics. Sam pledged to implement the principle fully, faithfully and unswervingly, and to lead Macao toward comprehensive progress under the leadership of President Xi and the central government.
