Five members of the Electoral Affairs Committee for the election of the next chief executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) government swore into office Wednesday.

The inauguration was presided over by Macao's chief executive Edmund Ho Hau Wah. The five members led by Chu Kin, a judge of the Court of Final Appeal, were recommended by the Independent Committee for the Nomination of Judges, and were appointed by Macao's incumbent chief executive Edmund Ho.

According to the Chief Executive Election Law passed earlier this month, principal officials, members of the Executive Council and the Legislative Council may not be the members of the committee, which will oversee a fair election to be held later this year.

The obligations of the committee include the management and promotion of the electoral process for members of the Election Committee and for the Chief Executive, specifically acting as the entity with the functions of directing and presiding over the polls at the election of the Chief Executive to be conducted by the Election Committee.

The committee will be responsible to establish the venue and the timetable for the electoral process for the members of the Election Committee and for the Chief Executive. It will issue guidelines and give clarifications on subjects related to the election of members of the Election Committee and of the Chief Executive, and supervise and ensure that the electoral process is conducted according to the law.

The committee will assess the capacity of the candidates proposed for the election of the chief executive, as well as the regularity and legality of the nomination process and finally admit the candidates to the office of the chief executive.

It will assess the regularity of electoral contributions received and expenditure made by the candidates to the office of the Chief Executive as well as the acts of the entities involved in the electoral process and report to the authorities any act that would have an offense to the election.

According to the Chief Executive Election Law, the election of the next chief executive should be held no later than Oct. 20.

Source: Xinhua