The sole candidate for Macao's leader pledges to diversify the casino city's economy

HONG KONG -- The sole candidate in the election for Macao’s next leader on Saturday pledged to diversify the economy of the Chinese casino city, a goal previously laid out by Beijing.

Sam Hou-fai, the city's former top judge, said at a news conference that the diversification is a key issue he must address. At a separate event, he told election committee members who will vote on Oct. 13 that the city has learned a lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic, saying most people would agree with the move.

Macao's tourism and gaming industries suffered a big slump because of the virus controls before China rolled back its “zero-COVID” strategy in late 2022.

Sam said just relying on the gaming industry is not enough. “Otherwise, how could we handle it if big disasters arise?” he said.

Sam, 62, is widely expected to secure the leadership in next month's vote, during which a 400-member committee — mostly dominated by establishment figures — picks the leader. Most of the semiautonomous territory’s population of 687,000 does not have a right to vote. He would be the city’s first leader from mainland China.

During the application period, he already received nominations from 386 committee members. The city’s safeguarding national security committee affirmed his loyalty to China and Macao.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has expressed hopes that the former Portuguese colony can promote healthy and sustainable economic development and diversify its economy, which its gaming industry has dominated for decades. Macao is the only place in China where casinos are legal.

In May, incumbent Chief Executive Ho Iat-seng said the gaming industry accounted for less than 40% of the city’s gross domestic product, down from its past contribution of about 60%. Last year, his government rolled out a diversification plan to boost the tourism and leisure industry and other sectors such as traditional Chinese medicine, finance, and exhibition and commerce.

Ho decided not to seek re-election due to health reasons.

Sam was born in Guangdong province in 1962 and graduated from the law school of Peking University in Beijing. He studied the Portuguese language, culture and law at the University of Coimbra in Portugal. He once worked as a lawyer in mainland China.

Sam was the city’s top judge from when Macao returned to Chinese rule in 1999 until he resigned in August.

Critics have questioned his ability to administer a government given his lack of business and executive background.

He previously said he has worked and lived in Macao for nearly 40 years. He argued his understanding of Macao is no worse than that of many well-known figures and likened his experience of managing the city’s courts to running a small government.

Sam has also handled some politically sensitive cases during his tenure, including upholding the police’s ban on a vigil commemorating China’s bloody 1989 military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests. The top court also ruled in the authorities’ favor over their decision to bar pro-democracy figures from joining the legislative election in 2021.