Second term handed to Macau chief Edmund Ho

[SeeMacau]

MACAU - Macau's incumbent leader Edmund Ho easily won a second and final five-year term yesterday after running unopposed in this gambling enclave.

Unlike his widely despised Hong Kong counterpart, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, Chief Executive Edmund Ho is popular in Macau after guiding an economic boom in this former Portuguese colony by opening its key gambling industry to competition and allowing Las Vegas casino operators to move in.

Gang violence also dropped significantly under his watch.

On Sunday, Mr Ho won 296 votes from an elite 300-member committee comprising business leaders and other top local figures. Three members abstained from the vote while one member was absent.

Mr Ho was Macau's first leader when it came under Chinese rule in December 1999 with guarantees of keeping its Western-style civil liberties for at least 50 years - the same conditions attached to former British colony Hong Kong's handover to Beijing seven years ago.

He is barred from a third term.

On Sunday, Mr Ho, 49, pledged to preserve Macau's autonomy and continue its growth, ensuring that 'most people in society can enjoy the fruits of our success'.

But he also warned about Macau's singular focus on gambling and its sensitivity to global economic fluctuations, urging people to maintain 'a high degree of crisis awareness'.

Local leaders said Mr Ho's selection was a foregone conclusion.

'There has never been any question that Edmund Ho would be chief executive of Macau into a second term, probably from the day he was selected for his first,' said Mr Au Kam Sam, one of just two Macau legislators to have ever challenged party policy since Mr Ho's ascendancy.

'It would be difficult for anyone to replace him anyway because the people here love him.'

Electoral college voter and the city's leading tycoon, casino boss Stanley Ho, welcomed the chief executive's re-selection.

'I think everyone in Macau should be very happy with the news,' the tycoon told Hong Kong's RTHK radio.

'In fact he has promised that he will ask everyone to unite and and help each other and take the opportunity now to develop Macau even better.'

[SeeMacau]

Chief Executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR), Mr. Edmund Ho was today re-elected for a second term with a massive support of 296 votes out of the 299 Election Committee members present.

299 members of the 300-member Election Committee voted at the election held at 10:00 this morning. Among the 299 votes, there are 296 effective votes and 3 blank votes.

The election took aproximately 90 minutes, after provisional counting, Mr. Chu Kin, the Chairman of the Electoral Affairs Committee for the election of the Chief Executive, announced the provisional result.

After being re-elected, Mr. Ho expressed his gratitude to the committee members for their trust and support.

In accordance to the "Chief Executive Election Law", the General Counting Committee would proceed to the general counting of votes at the election and the result would be submitted to the Court of Final Appeal for confirmation before announcement.

[sasamaca]

there is no point for the election
for there is only one elector

[SeeMacau]

But he cannot be elected too if he can't get more than 150 votes (over half of the total votes)

Anyway, he got 99% of the votes at the end !!

[SeeMacau]

MACAU (AP) - Macau's incumbent leader easily won a second and final five-year term on Sunday, after running unopposed in this gambling enclave.

Unlike his widely despised Hong Kong counterpart Tung Chee-hwa, Chief Executive Edmund Ho is popular in Macau after guiding an economic boom in this former Portuguese colony by opening its key gambling industry to competition and allowing Las Vegas casino operators to move in.

Gang violence also dropped significantly under his watch.

On Sunday, Ho won 296 votes from an elite 300-member committee comprising business leaders and other top local figures. Three members abstained from the vote while one was absent.

Ho was Macau's first leader when it came under Chinese rule in December 1999 with guarantees of keeping its Western-style civil liberties for at least 50 years _ the same conditions attached to former British colony Hong Kong's handover to Beijing seven years ago.

Ho is barred from a third term.

On Sunday, Ho, 49, pledged to preserve Macau's autonomy and continue its growth, ensuring that "most people in society can enjoy the fruits of our success.''

But he also cautioned about Macau's singular focus on gambling and its sensitivity to global economic fluctuations, urging people to maintain "a high degree of crisis awareness.''

Although Hong Kong and Macau only have partial democracies, people in Macau have been less demanding about reform. Many Macau citizens were dissatisfied with Portuguese administration and welcomed Chinese rule.

Macau also has a few token opposition lawmakers, in contrast with Hong Kong, which has a thriving pro-democracy political opposition.