Around 57 percent of the registered voters cast their votes yesterday at 37 polling stations spread across the city.
While many agree the voting process was easier than four years ago, some residents are still skeptical over Macau’s voting procedures, and others are unaware of Macau’s controversial voting system.
Speaking to the Times, several voters criticized the SAR’s voting system, arguing that the 14 directly elected seats in the Legislative Assembly (AL) are not enough. They suggested that the 12 seats nominated by the functional constituency system should be reduced to allow for more directly elected seats.
“There are not enough direct selections. It doesn’t make sense that the government can have that many appointed representatives,” said a 60-year old resident who refused to be identified.
Questioned whether he would also call for universal suffrage, the citizen responded, “later on, but this time, [we] cannot.”
Echoing the same sentiment, another registered voter expressed that the 2017 AL elections was only for a show, adding that some lawmakers only serve out of personal interest.
“I think this [election] is only commercial. It’s nothing. The assembly and everyone [in the AL] is commercial. [They] do not want to help the population, but only themselves,” said another Macau local, who also refused to be identified.
Florence Van, born and raised in Macau, declared, “I support democracy.”
She expressed support for universal suffrage for both the Chief Executive and the AL election, and believed that yesterday’s election was significant to Macau.
“If the city does not even vote for so few directly elected lawmakers, then nothing will change. I think everybody should contribute. If […] everybody does nothing, then change will not happen,” she said.
Another interviewee, surnamed Wong, who has been a teacher in Macau’s primary and middle schools for eight years, voted for the first time in this election. Yet he lamented that the elections “cannot change that much.”
He explained that due to the small number of seats given to directly elected lawmakers, some important bills, which residents have been wanting to be passed, cannot pass at the parliament.
“In addition, several of the lawmakers among the 14 directly elected ones are businessmen. […] Hence, I hope that more different voices can be heard in the AL,” he continued.
Wong believes that the democratic power in Macau is comparatively insubstantial, and the power of the pro-government lawmakers is too robust.
Although candidates brought out several fair ideas and several fair political platforms, he doubted whether the promises will come to pass.
“It is still unknown whether what they said will be realized. Nobody can promise that the lawmakers will stick to their words,” said Wong.
When commenting on the election and Macau’s democratic system, Wong replied, “the best for the general public is to have a happy life.”
“I think all systems have their own flaws,” said Wong, who considers that despite its flaws, democracy is still the best option for Macau.
The voter believed that there is still a lot of room for Macau’s democratic development, adding that as a millennial, youth concerns should be given more weight in the AL.
Another voter, surnamed Lei, noted that more than half of the registered voters are aged over 50, thus she believed that the youth voice would not have a strong impact in the AL.
“There will be some influence [from young people], but regardless of our voting preferences, that influence will not play a huge role,” said Lei. “But I still think we should vote. Those young candidates really need us to vote for them.”
Lei described the territory’s democratic situation as being “not okay.”
“It’s because firstly, the law is not okay. [Basic Law] says that Macau will not change for 50 years, and now I am really afraid it won’t even change in 50 years.”
A university student, surnamed Hoi, voted for the first time in the AL election along with her siblings, who are also university students and first time voters.
When talking to the Times, Hoi agreed that it is their duty to vote in the election.
The three students share the hope that lawmakers would speak for them in the AL regarding democracy.
Some meters away from the exit of the Portuguese School, the young voters said that although the arrangement of the polling stations at the school was “quite good” and the voting procedure was “fast,” they still hoped for some significant changes.
“I hope that the housing prices can go down a bit, and that there can be more public houses. I also hope that the Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau can provide more accurate weather forecasts,” said Hoi.
While some voters are still opting for the candidates they voted for in the previous elections, a few are seeking a change.
A non-Chinese speaking resident said that she voted for a candidate whom she believed was also seeking change in the AL.
“Many years ago, I [have been] wanting her to win because she’s also aiming for some changes. I think she’s a good leader,” she said.
Meanwhile, when asked whether they approved of Macau’s voting system, others admitted that they are not familiar with the city’s voting system.
“To tell you honestly, I don’t know about this system, I just did what I was encouraged to do, [and to show] solidarity; and maybe my vote can somehow count,” a voter said.
According to several inquiries by the Times, many of the Filipinos residing in the city voted for list number 6, Nova Esperança, led by candidate José Pereira Coutinho.
Filipino registered voters expressed that their loyalty to Coutinho was due to his help with issues faced by the Filipino community.
“I voted for him because he can help us [Filipinos]. I want candidates who can help my fellow compatriots,” said one interviewee.
“I think we can reach this legislator whenever we encounter problems. I think he’s the only legislator who we can approach, actually,” said another. Lynzy Valles, Julie Zhu
CAEAL recorded 12 irregularities on election day
The Electoral Affairs Commission for the Legislative Assembly Election (CAEAL) has recorded a total of 12 irregularities that were forwarded to the Public Security Police Force (PSP), Tong Hio Fong informed in the first press conference of the committee after the closing of the polling stations.
According to Tong, of those 12 irregularities, five are related to photo taking inside the polling stations.
Tong informed early yesterday morning of 10 cases of irregularities that occurred during the period of reflection between Friday midnight and yesterday. According to Tong, such cases were mostly related to the lack of removal or hiding of propaganda online, namely on social networks. Cases of promised or actual gifts, such as free meals, are also included among these 10 cases, he noted.
Addressing the preliminary figures of the voting stations, Tong said that a total of 174,000 people are believed to have voted in the direct elections, representing 57 percent of the electorate. As for the indirect suffrage, Tong said that the 5,550 voters represented around 91 percent of the total. RM
