MACAU EXCO APPOINTMENTS: SAFETY IN THE STATUS QUO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HONG KONG 002259

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/CM

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/10/2019
TAGS: PGOV PINR MC
SUBJECT: MACAU EXCO APPOINTMENTS: SAFETY IN THE STATUS QUO

REF: (A) HONG KONG 2171 (B) HONG KONG 1807

Classified By: Acting Consul General Christopher Marut for reasons 1.4(
b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary: Under the somewhat ambiguous banner,
"Continuity and Innovation Create Social Harmony" (chuancheng
chuangxin gongjian hexie),Chief Executive-designate Fernando
Chui Sai-on has opted to stick with the status quo in his
Executive Council. Of three new appointments to the
ten-member body announced December 1, one is merely a
changing of the guard from the major trade union. The
remaining two seats went to a popular legislator representing
the Fujianese minority and, in the only visible nod to
"innovation," a professional architect expected to offer
counsel on a number of anticipated development projects. End
summary.


2. (U) The Executive Council, or ExCo, is an advisory body to
the Chief Executive (CE) comprised of seven to eleven members
drawn "from among the principal officials of the executive
authorities, members of the Legislative Assembly and public
figures." Specific terms in the Basic Law are few - ExCo is
"an organ for assisting the Chief Executive in policy making"
which must meet at least once a month and which must be
consulted by the CE on major policies except under emergent
circumstances. As in Hong Kong, the CE is not obligated to
accept ExCo's advice, although s/he must document the basis
on which s/he chose not to do so. Unlike in Hong Kong, where
practice has been to include all cabinet-rank officials, only
Secretary for Justice and Administration Florinda Chan sits
in Macau's ExCo. CE-designate Fernando Chui Sai-on announced
his picks December 1, and they will take office with him
December 20.


3. (C) Of Chui's picks, seven are holdovers from outgoing CE
Edmund Ho's business-heavy ExCo. They are:

-- Secretary for Justice and Administration Florinda da Rosa
Silva Chan (age 55). Chan is the second-ranked official in
the government;

-- Leong Heng-teng, Chairman, General Union for Neighborhood
Associations (UGAMM or "Kai Fong") (age 62). Also a member
of the PRC Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
(CPPCC). Leong chose to retire from the Legislative Assembly
(LA) this year in favor of new blood. Kai Fong is the
largest of Macau's "traditional associations," providing a
range of social services. Observers have suggested its
influence is waning -- Kai Fong's joint ticket with the
Women's Association returned only one of its candidates in
the September LA elections, down from two in the previous LA;

-- Liu Chak-wan, Deputy Chairman, Chinese General Chamber of
Commerce (age 59). Also a CPPCC member;

-- Ma Iao-lei, Deputy Chairman, Chinese General Chamber of
Commerce (age 61). Also a CPPCC member;

-- Leonel Alves, indirectly elected LA member (professional
sector) (age 52). Also a CPPCC member. Lawyer Alves is seen
as representing the interests of Macau's mixed-heritage
Macanese community, and has advocated stronger links with
Portugal in the cultural and legal fields. Other Macanese
politicians with whom we have spoken do not necessarily
accept him as community leader;

-- Cheang Chi-keong, indirectly elected LA member
(industrial/commercial/financial sector) (age 57). Also a
member of the Board of Governors of the Chinese General
Chamber of Commerce; and

-- Lionel Leong Vai-tac, President, Macau Research Center
for Sustainable Development (age 47). Also a National
People's Congress (NPC) Deputy and a businessman. Leong, a
reputed Edmund Ho protege, has been tipped to us as being a
young leader to watch.


4. (C) The new faces include:

-- Chen Man-kam, directly-elected LA member (age 47). Also
a CPPCC member. Chan came second in the direct elections
only to Macau Federation of Trade Unions (MFTU) grand dame
Kwan Tsui-hang. Chan's role as a leader of Macau's sizable
Fujianese minority (reckoned as about twenty percent of the
population) makes him a smart choice for Chui's ExCo. Chan
is also strong among the working class. Chan is reputed to
be close to organized crime, a rumor perhaps substantiated in
part by his reported sweep of eighty percent of those ballots
cast by imprisoned voters (see ref B).


HONG KONG 00002259 002 OF 002


-- Ms. Ho Sut-heng, President, MFTU (age 50). MFTU
traditionally gets an ExCo seat, and Ho took it with the
departure of Lam Heong-sang; and

-- Eddie Wong Yue-kai, Chairman, Macau Red Cross (age 57).
Also a CPPCC member. Seen as a representative of the
professional sector, observers have judged Chui wanted
architect Wong's expertise on a number of pending reclamation
and development projects.


5. (C) The departed include:

-- Tong Chi-kin, former ExCo spokesman. Newly turned 70,
Tong is retiring. ExCo has not yet elected a new spokesman;

-- Ho Iat-seng, NPC Standing Committee (SC) member and
freshman indirectly-elected LA member
(industrial/commercial/financial sector). With his NPC/SC
duties and new role as LA Vice President, Ho told the press
he needed to reduce his workload. Once tipped as a potential
CE candidate, businessman Ho is a major power-broker in
Macau; and

-- Lam Heong-sang, indirectly elected LA member (labor
sector). MFTU was smart to spread the wealth: With Lam now
in the LA, they do well to add another voice in government
through Ho Sut-heng's seat in ExCo.
MARUT