New Macau: Gov’t lacked determination in preventing electoral corruption

Sulu Sou

The New Macau Association (ANM) has said that Macau’s government has shown “no determination in preventing and combating corruption in elections.”
ANM’s president, Sulu Sou, alongside other members of the association, handed in a petition  at the government headquarters yesterday criticizing Macau’s administration for tolerating “corrupt elections.”
In a letter addressed to the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Florinda Chan, the association recalled that the concluding report on the Legislative Assembly elections, held last year, has not been made public yet. They urge the department to release the results of such a report.
“At the AL election last year, we have seen: schools allowing election campaigns of some but not all lists; associations distributing gift packs and cash to its members; and free lunches being offered throughout the election day,” it reads.
ANM members believe that the “government has shown no determination in preventing and combating corrupt [activities] in the elections.”
They called on the authorities to release the report on last year’s AL elections, but the Public Administration and Civil Service Bureau (SAFP) told newspaper Hoje Macau back in July that the report was part of internal documentation and not due for release.
New Macau is also urging the government to revise current election legislation. The association suggested the establishment of a standing electoral affairs commission, while addressing other loopholes and increasing penalties for illegal or illegitimate campaign activities. Furthermore, ANM advocates for the establishment offer incentives to those who report incidents of bribery to the authorities.
Requiring candidates to declare their affiliation with specific associations – banning free bus rides to polling stations, and making mandatory the release of reports drafted by the Electoral Affairs Commission – were some of the other suggestions the ANM made.  CP