Sam Hou Fai sets public safety, stability as top second-half priority

Ensuring social order and public safety tops Macau’s second-half policy priorities, Chief Executive (CE) Sam Hou Fai announced Tuesday as part of the government’s “governance and security foundation” agenda.

The CE declared in his presentation of the 2026 second-half policy address on Tuesday that the government would “strengthen management of pedestrian flow in major gathering areas and fully ensure good public order, regional security, and overall social stability.”

He further pledged that, building on the full implementation of the 2026 Policy Address, the government would concentrate on several key directions during the second half of the year, with core objectives encompassing public order, security, and stability, alongside the implementation of planning and economic diversification.

In his review of the government’s first-half performance prior to outlining the second-half work priorities, Sam observed that since the Law on the Committee for Safeguarding National Security and its supporting administrative regulations came into effect on March 24, serious violent offenses, including homicide, have continued to remain at low or zero incidence.

A total of 236 violent crime cases were recorded between January and May, representing a decrease of 130 cases compared with the corresponding period in 2025.

He further pledged to ensure social order and public safety by “strengthening the management of pedestrian flow in major gathering areas” in the second half of the year.

He also vowed to unwaveringly safeguard national security and social stability, enhance the awareness and capability of his governance team and personnel in safeguarding national security, strengthen the prevention of national security risks, systematically advance legislative work on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism laws, and maintain a high-pressure stance against all types of illegal and criminal activities.

The government’s second-half priorities cover seven areas, including social order, the third five-year plan, economic diversification, Hengqin cooperation zone development, public administration reform, institutional reform, and external cooperation, Sam announced, adding that Macau’s ‘One country, two systems’ cause is entering a new stage of high-quality development, and the government will unite all sectors to implement the policy, safeguard national sovereignty and security, and advance diversification, urban renewal, and livelihood reforms.