AL PLENARY | Political reform isn’t the most pressing matter

A spoken enquiry delivered by lawmaker Ng Kuok Cheong has sparked further debate on Macau’s political reform, but it remains clear that – for some – democracy is not a priority. The government reiterated the stance that democracy is not only about introducing universal suffrage.
A large number of legislators said that there are rather more pressing matters needing the administration’s attention, namely housing and public transportation.
Ng believes that the electoral system is not being developed taking into account Macau’s reality. As only 14 lawmakers have been directly elected by Macau’s citizens, it’s not enough to represent the local population.
The bill promising top officials lavish retirement packages is an example of how the government failed to represent its citizens, he recalled. “The bill was only withdrawn [from the Legislative Assembly] after thousands of residents staged a [sit-in] protest in front of the AL building,” he said.
Ng believes that the authorities should take advantage of Macau’s thriving economic momentum to introduce political reform.
Although the number of directly elected lawmakers has increased, the pro-democracy legislator urged the government to move forward and introduce some form of political reform.
An adviser for the Secretary for Administration and Justice’s office, Chio Cheong Yang, recalled that the development of a democratic political system is not only about implementing universal suffrage.
“Amending the electoral law is not the only way to promote a democratic political system. We need to ensure the stability of [our] political system,” he said.
Mr Yang recalled that Macau underwent political reform in 2012, resulting in an increase in the number of directly elected lawmakers, as well as an increase in the number of members comprising the Electoral College, which elects the Chief Executive.
He stressed that the National People Congress (NPC) deliberation on the matter back in 2012 stressed that the measures introduced should remain unchanged for “a long period of time.”
Although José Pereira Coutinho, Leong Veng Chai, Au Kam San and Ng Kuok Cheong have advocated for the democratization of Macau’s political system, a large number of lawmakers seem to instead agree with the government’s point of view.
Tsui Wai Kwan, an appointed lawmaker, thinks that the administration should focus on societal issues that need reform.
“A few days ago, some fellow lawmakers proposed a debate on political reform and it was vetoed by the AL plenary. Take the example of Occupy Central, which has highly affected Hong Kong’s families, and even friends, who got angry at each other as they had diverging opinions. We need to take into account Macau’s reality and we need ‘a healthy suffrage,’” he reiterated.
Ma Chi Seng, a lawmaker appointed by the Chief Executive, recalled that Macau worked on political reform back in 2012, and therefore “there’s no urgency in changing the electoral law now.” “We need to focus more on the diversification of our economy, on transportation, and housing policies. Macau’s population is more concerned about these issues and the government needs to work on solving them,” he added.
Consequently, the lawmaker believes that another round of political reform would not benefit the city.