(11 Oct 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Hong Kong – 10 October 2024
++STARTS ON SOUNDBITE++
1. SOUNDBITE (English) Raf Wober, Associated Press:
"Macao is going to have a new leader this year. It’s a small place on the southern coast of China but it’s big because of its gambling, gaming, casino industry. It’s the only place in China where casinos are legal. Portugal used to have it as a colony but gave it back to China in 1999. The new leader-to-be is not elected by universal suffrage but by an election committee, who are appointed by authorities, who choose them to choose the leader. Sam Hou Fai is the only candidate who is standing in this election, so it is almost 100% sure that he is going to be the new leader, likely to be sworn in in December this year, when it is the anniversary of Macao’s return to China. And then, what he has already spoken about is that he is going to have to try to work out whether Macao can diversify its economy so that it is not so dependent on the revenue from the casinos."
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STORYLINE:
About 400 Beijing loyalists will begin voting on Sunday to endorse Macao’s sole candidate for the Chinese casino hub’s top job, set to make him the first city leader born from mainland China in a largely ceremonial election.
Former top judge Sam Hou Fai’s expected victory within hours marks a departure from the long-standing custom of having chief executives who were born in the former Portuguese colony, typically from influential business families.
With the city’s leadership shifting to a man from the legal profession, analysts say it will create expectations of potentially decreased influence from business circles, which critics have often accused of colluding with the officials.
They anticipate Beijing’s policy agenda for the city will take priority.
During the nomination period, Sam, 62, is widely seen to have Beijing’s blessings.
He already secured endorsements from 386 of the 400 election committee members who will vote on Sunday.
Most of the territory’s 687,000 residents lack voting rights, leading to mixed sentiments.
Some hope Sam will heed public opinion and avoid prioritizing business interests, while others feel disconnected from an election process they can’t participate in.
Still, political observers said many residents are comfortable with Sam’s non-local origins in a city that has been home to migrants for decades.
Although Sam’s victory is guaranteed, the real challenges await in the governance hurdles that lie ahead.
Macao is the only place in China where casino gambling is legal.
Beijing has called for the city to diversify its gaming-reliant economy.
Sam has promised to accelerate the current government’s plan to boost the tourism and leisure industry and other sectors such as traditional Chinese medicine, finance, and exhibition and commerce.
However, the city still needs to bank on the gambling industry for government revenues to support the city’s welfare and accomplish other goals laid out by Beijing, the analysts said.
China wants Macao to develop as a world-class tourism and leisure center and to play a bigger role as a bridge for trade between China and Portuguese-speaking countries.
Locally, smaller businesses are reeling when residents tend to spend money in the neighboring mainland city of Zhuhai, which offers a wider selection with good value for money.
Chinese tourists are also now spending less than before.
Sam was born in neighboring Guangdong province in 1962.
He graduated from the prestigious law school of Peking University in Beijing.
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