ONE YEAR AFTER THE CE | Reelection Gaming downturn is Chui’s greatest challenge

Chui Sai On

Chui Sai On was reelected as Macau’s Chief Executive one year ago, with 380 votes cast by a small Electoral College. The election may have been seamless, but the region’s top leader encountered some opposition and is now dealing with the economic consequences of a sharp decline in gaming revenue.
“The greatest challenge at the moment is dealing with the casino revenue fall and, at the same time, diversifying the economy to include other sectors beyond gaming while dealing with the decreasing growth of the Chinese economy and with the turbulence in the stock markets,” scholar Sonny Lo, who studies Macau politics at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, explained to Lusa.
“I think that Macau is facing a phase where it needs to adjust itself to the regional and global economic circumstances,” he added.
When Chui Sai On was reelected, the gaming revenue had started its downward spiral, but it was hard to predict that the decline would continue for fifteen straight months, leading the sector to regress to the values registered in 2011.
Many protests and marches were organized during 2014. The biggest of these happened in May, when 20,000 people protested Mr Chui’s attempt to legislate a lavish retirement package for top officials and legal immunity for the Chief Executive for any misdeeds committed while in office.
One year after the election day (31 August), there is hesitation regarding the renewal of the gaming licenses. “It seems that the government established a set of requirements,” Sonny Lo noted, adding that the labor relations management may change, as well as the development of the non-gaming sector.
According to Sonny Lo, the government faces a new phase of social and financial challenges. “Public finances [health] and the sustainable economic development of Macau will indicate whether the government was successful or not.” MDT/Lusa