Susana Chou: "Flattery’ a trend in the government"

Susana Chou: ‘Flattery’ a trend in the government
01/12/2009 00:41:00

MACAU DAILY TIMES

Former president of the Legislative Assembly, Susana Chou, said on her blog yesterday that some existing government officials choose to turn a deaf ear to public opinions and “see criticisms as attacks”, and therefore officials who don’t make flattering remarks “will not be given important jobs”.
Ms Chou started to share her thoughts with the public on the Internet after retiring from the legislature on October 16 this year.
In addition, in the November 28 article she criticised Secretary for Administration and Justice Florinda Chan for having said that “the Macau law is not lagging behind”.
In her latest article posted on the blog, the ex-Assembly president said she believed that no government in the world will never make mistakes, especially the Macau SAR Government which has only been established for 10 years.
“Before the handover Macau’s economy experienced years of negative growth and public security was almost out of control, but Macau people could still tolerate it and live with the others peacefully,” Ms Chou wrote.
“The strange thing is, today Macau’s economy has been developed, the city is bigger, public security is improved and social welfare is also largely increased. The discontent of Macau people in contrast has become more prevalent. Is it because the residents have changed, or there are some problems in the governance?,” she added.
Ms Chou in the meantime said that it was justified to see government officials make mistakes due to a lack of governance experience, however she stressed that if the officials could “admit their mistakes, actively search for the reasons, accept criticism with an open mind and then improve their work based on the opinions and suggestions from the public, Macau people who are always kind and simple will be willing to accept [the mistakes]”.
Despite the former legislature head recognised the achievements over the past decade under the leadership of Chief Executive Edmund Ho Hau Wah and agreed that “a majority of the government officials are law-abiding, working actively and striving to serve the people”, she pointed out that there is still a group of officials who are “unambitious, not close to public opinions, and unaware of how an official should do.
“Although [they are earning] high salaries, their top priority is not the interest of the people... They can’t hear and also can’t see what the people need,” Ms Chou said.
“These officials only listen to what they like to listen, see criticisms as attacks and suggestions as dissenting views. This is exactly how the unhealthy trend of ‘flattery’ is being promoted, people who tell the truth aren’t dare to speak again, and those who have the capabilities will not be given important jobs”, she added.
Ms Chou’s article also reads that if these officials can use the time they spend on cocktail receptions, ribbon-cutting ceremonies and social networking events to “carefully listen to what the civil servants and residents get to say, then it will be a blessing for the people”.

Disagrees with Florinda Chan

On the other hand, the former legislature president last Saturday wrote on her blog that she could not agree with the Secretary for Administration and Justice that Macau’s law was not lagging behind.
“Did Secretary Chan never notice that during the past 10 years when I was the president of the Legislative Assembly, the lawmakers’ demands to change the current obsolete situation of the law were so strong?” Ms Chou said.
She pointed out that to date Macau still has not established a budgeting and public financial management system in line with the Basic Law, “how many more 10 years Macau people have to wait in order to have budgeting legislation that meets the social development?”.
In addition, the Land Law has been in place for over 25 years, which she said has already “disconnected” from the economic reality and also cannot meet the needs of land grants for large-scale projects.
At present, Macau is still practising the Tax Implementation Code which was enacted back in 1950, “when can Macau have its own tax implementation code?” Ms Chou questioned.
“My biggest regret as the legislature president is that I couldn’t improve the obsolete situation of the Macau law based on the social development and demands within my term of office,” she said.
Meanwhile, “executive-led” has been the fundamental concept of the SAR government’s political regime, but the ex-legislature president pointed out that over the past 10 years the government “unilaterally drafted legal reforms and legislative planning without communicating or negotiating with the Legislative Assembly.
“The government for a long time neglects the Assembly which is the most representative public opinion organ,” Ms Chou wrote.
“[The government] ignores lawmakers’ opinions about how they should resolve problems in the existing legal system step by step and with plans,” she added.
It was reported on November 18 that Secretary Chan said a legal reform and listening to the Assembly’s opinions before drafting bills would lead to a “legislative-led” situation that contradicted to the principle of “executive-led”.
“It’s really hard for me to accept [Secretary Chan’s viewpoints]. I believe that Secretary Chan doesn’t know the difference between ‘executive-led’ and ‘legislative-led’,” Ms Chou said.
“I’m convinced that under the current political regime designed by the Macau Basic Law, ‘legislative-led’ can never happen in the Macau SAR,” she added.