HONG KONG: The new Legislative Assembly of the Macao Special Administrative Region faces great expectations for diversifying the economy, improving people’s lives and deepening cooperation between the SAR and the mainland with the groundbreaking cross-border cooperation zone, the central government offices said on Monday.
In separate statements, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, which oversees the affairs of the Hong Kong and Macao SARs, and the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao SAR congratulated the city on the successful completion of its seventh Legislative Assembly elections, which were held on Sunday.
The two offices also praised the election results as demonstrating the principle of “patriots administering Macao”, as well as democracy and broad participation of people from all levels and sectors of Macao society.
After 12 hours of polling, 14 of the 128 candidates won seats through direct election, with a turnout rate of 42.38 percent or 137,281 votes cast out of more than 320,000 registered voters, despite thunderstorms and hot weather.
Of the 14 members, seven were newly elected and seven reelected, including Si Ka-lon, who got the most votes with 26,593.
Si thanked voters for their trust and said he will see to it that the cooperation zone in Hengqin will maximize Macao’s development.
Three members of the Macao Institution of People’s Alliance were elected, making it the largest party in the Legislative Assembly with a total of 14 direct-elected seats.
Sunday’s election also saw 12 elected through indirect elections by six constituencies the business and financial sector, the labor sector, the professional sector, the education and social services sector, and the cultural and sports sector.
– The Daily Mail-China Daily News exchange item
