New leader of Macau faces up to growing challenges
Posted by Bev Freeman on 27 Jul 2009 at 10:07
The imminent arrival of Macau's new leader is due to come at an "uncertain time" in the history of the gambling enclave, according to commentators.
Fernando Chui is now the only candidate in the process to select the new head of the former Portuguese colony, now under Chinese rule.
The Guardian's Dikky Sinn reports his all but certain arrival comes at a crossroads in the history of Macau, the only place in China where casinos are legal.
Even this once-booming rival to Las Vegas has been affected by the global financial crisis. Developments have slowed and revenue has fallen. International developers, who once clamoured to join the gold rush, are now more hesitant as visitor numbers decline.
The 52-year-old Chui is a former culture minister and is well-known locally. According to the Guardian report, the queue is already forming at his door before he has even taken his seat. The gambling industry wants to see tax reduced before the growing gaming rival of Singapore, where taxes are lower, starts to take over from Macau.
Onlookers have said little is expected to change in the early days of the new leader's reign. Taxes may well stay the same and expansion rules may not be relaxed. Furthermore, significant changes will probably have to be approved by the Beijing government.
Quoted by the Guardian, political analyst Larry So of Macau Polytechnic Institute said: "There's nothing much he can do because everything is in the pipeline.
"Everyone accepts gambling policy in the near future is designed to slow the industry because it grew too fast."
Last year the outgoing leader of Macau, Edmund Ho, introduced a slowdown in new casino licences and new applications for more tables and machines in an effort to halt the out of control expansion.
But one of the biggest hopes riding on the back of Chui's arrival relates to the sensitive visa issue.
Beijing has tightened restrictions for Chinese visitors wishing to get permission to visit Macau, and some expect that these could again be relaxed in an effort to smooth the process for the new figurehead. The restrictions have often been mentioned in the same breath as reports relating to Macau's fall in revenue.
Chui has promised "if I am elected, I shall take an integrated approach to development and make great efforts to promote the sustainable growth of gaming-related industries," via his campaign website and has also pledged to expand the conference market. He also plans to make more use of Macau's more traditional and historic toursim magnets.
According to the Guardian report, Chui is something of a product of Macau's creme-de-la-creme, a former lawmaker from a wealthy local family who holds a doctorate in public health from America.
To get to this point he won 286 votes out of 300 in an initial election commission nomination stage. No other candidates managed to drum up the minimum of 50 votes needed in order to stand against him. However, a vote is still due to be held over the weekend, although the procedure is widely seen as a mere formality. Chui will have to get 151 votes to seal his place as chief executive.
He would then formally take his place on December 20, which as it happens is 10-year anniverssary day for Macau's move under Chinese rule.
