With the pandemic over, analysts say that the Chief Executive should take advantage of his presence in the Legislative Assembly to bring the Government closer to the population, starting with clarifying the scope of the National Security Law. In the economic recovery chapter, they ask for a clear guide, stressing that integration in the Greater Bay is a short message for residents
The Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng, participates this Friday for the first time in a plenary session of the Legislative Assembly since Macau lifted the pandemic restrictions.
The vice-president of the Macao Synergy Association, Johnson Ian, expects the Chief Executive to convey essentially two messages: responsibility and closeness to ordinary citizens.
He also points to public administration reform, one of the main focuses of Ho Iat Seng’s electoral campaign, as something still to be achieved.
“Some superficial improvements were made in public administration, such as the creation of the ‘Macao Single Account’. But the public’s expectations are not just focused on that, nor should it be satisfied. We expect deeper reforms”, he tells PLATAFORMA.
PALACE FAR FROM THE PEOPLE
The vice-president of the Macau Synergy Association describes that during the pandemic the Government seemed like an “exhausted machine” and that, although it achieved some successes – such as the quick purchase of masks at the beginning of the crisis -, its “real capacity” was exposed with the worsening of the pandemic.
In his opinion, the introduction of certain economic measures demonstrated that the Government was not close enough to the people. “After three years of the pandemic, the population’s confidence in the Government has declined. This happened because many of the policies were not practical, with the authorities becoming increasingly distant, whether in terms of prevention, financial assistance or even economic recovery. The result was unsatisfactory, ”he concludes.
In addition, he points out that the Government “was not held accountable and it seems that the community has to accept and support everything that has been done. Indeed, many points were lost by the Government, culminating in an ever-decreasing interaction between society and the Government, with less mutual trust.”
Ian, a former journalist, also sees less interaction between government officials and the media and some organisations. “The Government has little interaction with the public, even with groups considered to be Government supporters. Even these find there is a growing sense of detachment. There are many public policies, such as post-pandemic prevention and recovery measures, that are far from what public opinion wants.”
Therefore, he hopes that the Chief Executive “can really bring a message of accountability and get closer to the people when he speaks to deputies.
We have to prevent the mutual trust between the Government and the public from diminishing, otherwise it will be difficult to carry out any ambitious plans as society will not trust anything that comes from the Government. This is the message that must be conveyed.”
GOVERNMENT INFLEXIBILITY
Francis Choi, commentator on social affairs, feels that executive leadership is less flexible than before, given that it often seems unwilling to listen to the views of the population. “The more a government believes in wisdom and public participation, the more enlightened and intelligent it will be, in addition to improving its ability to govern”.
When addressing MPs’ questions, Choi expects the Government to be explicit, explaining to the population that it is willing to accept different opinions and that it encourages the media to speak with the Government directly or indirectly.
On the other hand, he wants to see the issue of amendments to the National Security Law and the right to collective bargaining under the new Trade Union Law clarified.
“What worries people now is whether there will be anyone in Macau who might have made some speeches, participated in some reports, or discovered some information that, when publicly disclosed, could violate the National Security Law, reveal some state secret, or are considered a crime of secession.
Some deputies also indicated that the day-to-day public administration secrets of Macao should not be equated with serious state secrets. I think we all hope that the members of the Assembly will clarify this with the Chief Executive, and that he will respond unequivocally.” Eilo Yu, a political scientist and professor at the University of Macau, adds that deputies should inquire about the “loyalty of public officials” in view of the amendment to the National Security Law.
NEW MANDATE WITH MORE EXPENSES
According to the director of Tourism Services, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, preliminary data indicate that Macau received more than 4.96 million visitors in the first quarter of 2023 – 3.25 million came from mainland China. The Directorate of Inspection and Coordination of Games (DICJ) disclosed that gross gaming revenues exceeded 34.6 billion patacas.
Although these indicators represent a significant increase compared to 2022, the truth is that both do not reach half of the values recorded in the same period of 2019.
Leon Ieong Meng U, associate professor at the Department of Government and Public Administration at the University of Macau, tells PLATAFORMA that these figures should allow the Government to meet its forecast of 130 billion patacas in gross gaming revenue for this year. However, he emphasizes that this amount can only be used to cover regular government expenses, without creating surpluses. The academic warns of the problems arising from the aging of the population: “There are some structural issues, such as social security, which already represents around 7 percent of public finances and will only increase with the aging of the population. This is going to be a big problem. If there are no surprises, the Chief Executive should serve one more term. But how you intend to resolve this issue is, in my opinion, a central issue for the future of Macau.”
Francis Choi reveals to the newspaper that he is concerned with economic revitalization and the creation of new sources of revenue. The commentator points out that the reduction of Macau’s financial reserves has triggered a series of internal policies to cut expenses to increase the surplus. “Social services, for example, place a lot of emphasis on continuing education, due to rapid changes in society. Youth suicide is a serious problem, but some welfare organizations have reported that their funding has been cut.”
Leong hopes that the Government will clearly articulate the direction and plans for Macao’s future development. “What does Macau want to do in the future? I don’t think we can simply say that we are going to integrate into the Greater Bay Area, as if all problems were solved by this integration. There are a lot of intermediate steps to take and I think it’s important to talk about a direction that people find viable and really beneficial.”
