Cheong: Candidates’ ineligibility to file for appeal do not violate Basic Law

The bill to amend the Chief Executive election law will standardize the qualifications of committee members, executive council spokesperson Andre Cheong has said.

If they are judged ineligible for election, they cannot file a statement of objection or judicial appeal, he clarified.

Asked whether the non-appealable practice would violate the Basic Law, Cheong, spokesman and Secretary for Administration and Justice, said it is 100% certain that there is no violation of the Basic Law.

Meanwhile, the 45-day public consultation process on the revision of the bill has received more than 2,000 suggestions.

More than 90% of the opinions agree with the revision of the election law, and less than 3.5% oppose it. Cheong said that the government respects all opinions, but it needs to make choices based on mainstream opinions, and it will deeply consider opposing opinions so that the law can be improved.

In June, the government announced it would amend the bill to include a provision requiring the city’s gaming concessionaires to maintain neutrality during the election.

The city’s next election will take place in 2024. Each term of the Macau CE runs for five years, with members eligible for re-election for a second five-year term. The CE is elected by a college composed of 400 members. LV