A Government of the Middle, by the Middle and for the Middle

Um Governo do Meio, pelo Meio e para o Meio
Só as grandes expectativas conduzem a grandes desilusões. Como em Março passado nos foi dada uma pista do que seria o novo Governo da RAEM, tenho de admitir que as minhas expectativas eram, desta feita, bastante baixas – mas o factor surpresa poderia ter sido induzido, para melhor (o inesperado) e para pior (bater no fundo!).
http://pontofinalmacau.wordpress.com/editoriais-e-opiniao/
A Government of the Middle, by the Middle and for the Middle
(Published in Portuguese in Ponto Final, Macao, November 19th 2010)
By Eric Sautede

Only high expectations are conducive to great disappointments, and as we had already had a hint at what was to come from the new Macao SAR government last March, I must admit that my expectations were rather low this time around—surprises could thus be enticed, for better (the unexpected) and for worse (a race to the bottom)! Let’s be clear right from the start: the policy address delivered by Fernando Chui Sai-on on November 16th is just uninspiring as well as short-sighted, and seems to denote a misunderstanding (at best!) of the role the political leader of a community has to play, and ultimately confirms a propaganda-like logorrhea twist that is rather worrying for the “high-degree of autonomy” that the SAR is supposed to enjoy until 2049.
The lack of inspiration and shortsightedness have to do with the format and the main points of the address. Having yearly addresses that try to stick to yearly promises impose constraints that flatten—or rather annihilate!—any attempt at encompassing the whole mandate of the Chief Executive. Not being elected directly by the people does not exclude having some sort of vision for the community as a whole where priorities are clearly formulated for the mid-term: openly proclaiming these priorities, putting them in motion, reflecting on them critically thanks to well-engineered consultation processes and ultimately validating them or on the contrary re-orienting them can provide a much-needed dose of accountability!
In the case of the previous Chief Executive, Edmund Ho Hau-wah, the roadmap was plain and simple and could in fact be stretched to cover his two mandates: making sure that the “one country, two systems” formula was a success, both politically and economically. Economically, nobody would dare challenge the idea that the vision of a liberalized gambling industry translated into an amazing accomplishment—indeed far beyond any expectations! Politically, let’s also recognized that Macao was up to 2006 (and if we put aside the controversial implementation of article 23 in 2009) considered as fairing good, and even somewhat relatively better than Hong Kong during the chaotic years of Tung Chee-hwa.
With the huge corruption scandal involving former secretary for public works Ao Man-long, the whole administration of Macao got tainted: a perception that still runs deep among the people of Macao, as the report released last month by Transparency International again indicates. Moreover, the tardiness and inappropriateness of corrective measures (regarding public housing, inflation, transportation, health care facilities, sport facilities beyond grandiose events, education, human resources, etc.) addressing growing social inequalities that accompanied mind-blowing economic growth and helping the community to better prepare for fast-changing transformations confirmed the impression that once set in motion, the whole machinery could not adequately be reined in by the government.
Somehow, comments made last week-end by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao regarding “the power that has to operate under the sun" and the duty of the SAR government “to spend more money on livelihood issues” were a stark reminder of the government’s shortcomings, or at the very least the abysmal chiasm that exists between the huge financial resources of the administration and public policies actually implemented. In the second quarter of 2010, the government only spent a quarter of its revenues and in the past two years, the practice has been to only spend half of the yearly revenues—a situation inconceivable for Irish or Greeks! I am moreover pretty convinced that Chinese Premier Wen, did not only mean “more”, but also “better”. Indeed the “huge handout” (amounting to MOP$6.6 billion and at least one fifth of the government overall spending or forsaken revenues if one aggregates actual handouts, tax exemptions and subsidies) announced by the Chief Executive does confirm the “more” but entertains huge question marks as to the “better”, especially if it is understood as fairer. Is the diminution of the cash handout from MOP$6,000 to 4,000 an indication of a slow but certain phasing out of this counter-productive and iniquitous measure? What about the all-around electricity bill subsidy then?
Politics require courage and the capacity to confront issues and to project oneself in the future so that the community is able to hold its destiny in its own hands. Caring for the ones in need and paying attention to the middle-class—something rather new in this Policy Address, and rightly so if the government does not want to antagonize the many people who now want more say in the decision-making process—are a necessity, moreover inscribed in the Basic Law regarding the former! But so is a wider debate on the evolution of the political system in Macao and a timeline encompassing the five years of the first mandate of Mr Chui for major measures. Some issues simply cannot be avoided and certainly not ditched without a substantial explanation. And for the last time, please Mr Chui, let go with the “sunshine government” (yanguang zhengfu) and the “scientific decision-making” (kexue juece): what lies behind is right but the jargon definitely belongs to the first system!