A former senior judge in Macao has been chosen as the next leader of the gambling outpost, in a move that appears to signal a further shift in line with Chinese policy.  Sam Hou Fai will assume office in December, following an unopposed ‘ceremonial’ election on Sunday when 394 of the entire 400-member selection committee gave him their backing.  Sam, 62, was the sole candidate in the process but his background represents a notable juncture.  He was president of Macao’s highest court for more than 20 years and the shift toward a chief executive from outside the Chinese territory’s traditional business community is significant.  Sam will also be the first Macao leader born on the Chinese mainland, as the former Portuguese colony prepares for change. The shift in the city’s leadership from the gambling and business community to a figurehead drawn from the legal professional will come with efforts to diversify its economy away from reliance on the gambling market.  There is an expectation that Beijing’s policy agenda for Macao will be prioritized, with the government office responsible for the city, as well as Hong Kong, describing Sam as a ‘patriot’.  The regime has talked up his appointment in what appears to be a deliberate placement after the former justice previously railed against the “wild” expansion of the gambling sector.  Sam Hou Fai, who was elected by an overwhelming majority as the sixth-term chief executive designate of China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Sunday, pledging to unwaveringly implement the "one country, two systems" policy.

 

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