{"id":330116,"date":"2024-09-10T06:29:50","date_gmt":"2024-09-10T11:29:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=330116"},"modified":"2024-09-10T09:15:51","modified_gmt":"2024-09-10T14:15:51","slug":"sam-hou-fai-to-stand-unopposed-for-macau-leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/sam-hou-fai-to-stand-unopposed-for-macau-leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Judge Sam Hou Fai to Stand Unopposed for Macau Leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"

Macau\u2019s former top judge will soon attain the highest leadership position in the Special Administrative Region (SAR).<\/p>\n

\"Macau
The pro-Beijing Sam Hou Fai, above, has criticized Macau\u2019s reliance on the casino sector and will be the first chief executive to be born outside of the gambling hub. (Image: Macao News<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On Tuesday, Sam Hou Fai<\/a> received a record 96% of the nominations to become the sole candidate for the chief executive position from a 400-strong pro-Beijing election panel. The nomination period for the SAR’s leadership election ended last Thursday.<\/p>\n

Current leader Ho Iat Seng announced in August<\/a> that he would not seek a third term as chief executive, citing poor health.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sam, 62, stepped down as president of the Court of Final Appeal, Macau\u2019s highest court, ahead of his announcement in late August that he would run for office. He will now stand unopposed in the October election, rendering the voting process somewhat meaningless for Macau\u2019s citizens.<\/p>\n

Concerns for Casino Sector?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A native of Zhongshan, Guangdong Province, in mainland China, Sam will be the first Macau chief executive to have been born outside the gambling hub. He will also be the first to hail from the legal profession as opposed to the business sector.<\/p>\n

The panel\u2019s emphatic support for Sam reflects his willingness to toe the party line. Certainly, his views on the gaming industry echo those of the central government in Beijing, which has long pressed for the diversification of Macau\u2019s economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Beijing blames the industry for facilitating money laundering and capital flight from the mainland. The government is currently cracking down on illegal money exchanges that allow mainland gamblers to circumvent tight controls on the movement of money.<\/p>\n

\n

Sam has stressed the need for Macau to \u201creform and innovate\u201d to overcome challenges to its economic and political development. He blames the casino industry for \u201cstraining the resources of society\u201d and narrowing career choices for young people.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cFor a period of time, the tourism and gaming industry developed in a disorderly manner and expanded wildly,\u201d Sam said at a press briefing last month. \u201cHaving one dominant industry is not beneficial for Macau\u2019s long-term development and has had a very negative impact.<\/p>\n

\u201cMacau\u2019s long-term development is only possible with the country\u2019s support,\u201d he added, alluding to heightened cooperation with Beijing.<\/p>\n

Pro-Beijing<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Macau has its own financial system and a degree of political autonomy as an SAR under China\u2019s one country, two systems policy. However, despite its capitalism, it has been far less resistant to the creeping influence of Beijing than has Hong Kong, its fellow SAR and neighbor across the Pearl River Delta.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s probably due to its population makeup. More than half of Macau’s 686,607 citizens have immigrated from the mainland in the past few decades. In contrast, most of Hong Kong\u2019s population was born and raised in a liberal, free-market democracy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Macau\u2019s former top judge will soon attain the highest leadership position in the Special Administrative Region (SAR). On Tuesday, Sam Hou Fai received a record 96% of the nominations to become the sole candidate for the chief executive position from a 400-strong pro-Beijing election panel. The nomination period for the SAR’s leadership election ended last […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":330117,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69069,61],"tags":[82217,84523,92163,92162],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSam Hou Fai to Stand Unopposed for Macau Leadership<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Former Judge Sam Hou Fai gains 96% of nomination to stand for Macau chief executive. 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