President Hu Jintao
on Monday called for proper handling of problems concerning the
implementation of the "one country, two systems" policy. He also
praised the concept, which was formulated by the late leader
Deng Xiaoping.
He said that it has already displayed and will
continue to display strong vitality, based on the successful
efforts made since the return of Hong Kong and Macao.
But problems could occasionally arise in
implementing the principle in each special administrative region
(SAR) since it has never been tried before and is still new for all
concerned.
"It is therefore necessary for both the central
government and the two SAR governments, as well as the people of
Hong Kong and Macao, to actively explore ways to implement the
principle effectively," Hu said.
The Chinese leader made the call at celebrations of
the fifth anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland and the
inauguration of its government’s second term
The grand gathering was held at the Macao Cultural
Center, where the handover ceremony took place five years ago.
With Hu administering, Edmund Ho Hau Wah was
sworn in as the second-term chief executive of the Macao
SAR.
Ho was reelected on August 29 with 296 votes in
favor and three abstentions from a total of 299 members of the
300-strong Election Committee.
On September 20, Premier Wen Jiabao issued a State
Council decree officially appointing Ho as chief executive for
another five-year term in line with the Basic Law.
Ho was elected as the first chief executive of
Macao SAR on May 15, 1999.
Following Ho's swearing-in, principal officials of
the SAR government and ten Executive Council members took their
oaths under the supervision of the president.
During his speech at the ceremony, Hu urged the
broadest unity from all walks of life to ensure the long-term
prosperity and stability of Macao.
"It is necessary to promote greater unity ... among
all social strata, sectors and communities to maintain and
consolidate general harmony in society," he said.
There should be a spirit of mutual accommodation
and seeking consensus while reserving differences when there is
temporary disagreement on certain issues, he noted.
Hu urged Macao’s government to put people first and
constantly improve its level of governance.
"It is imperative for the SAR government to firmly
establish the concept of serving and benefiting the people and to
provide better services to the general public," he said.
Despite Macao's fast-paced development, additional
efforts should be made to promote sustainable and healthy economic
growth in the city, Hu added.
Meanwhile, the SAR should strengthen its personnel
training to foster quality talent for future development.
Ho expressed his thanks for the all-around and
unreserved support from the central government and pledged to
improve the SAR's governance to better serve Macao's people.
Also on Monday, Hu inspected the People's
Liberation Army (PLA) Garrison Troops stationed in Macao, according
to Xinhua.
Hu, also general secretary of the Central Committee
of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman of the CPC
Central Military Commission, inspected the troops of the PLA Macao
garrison at their barracks on Taipa Island.
Hu said in a speech after the inspection that the
troops there are symbolic of the resumption of the central
government's exercise of sovereignty over Macao, and help to
maintain national security, sovereignty and territorial integrity,
and serve as a powerful guarantee for the SAR's long-term security
and stability.
The president spoke highly of their performance in
the past five years and urged them to continue to respect and
support the SAR government and the Macao people, so as to make new
contributions to stability and prosperity.
The troops entered Macao upon its return to the
motherland on December 20, 1999.
(China Daily December 21, 2004)
