Macao's incoming chief executive thanks incumbent government for smooth transition

Macao's Chief Executive-elect Sam Hou Fai said that he appreciated the incumbent administration's strong support for a smooth transition of power and responsibilities to his term of government starting Dec 20.

Sam was elected on Oct. 13 as the sixth chief executive-designate of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), garnering 394 votes from the 400-member election committee, and appointed by the central government on Oct 25.

Sam, 62, is set to succeed incumbent Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng on Dec 20 for a five-year term.

He was born in Zhongshan of south China's Guangdong Province in May 1962 and moved to Macao in the 1980s. He joined Macao's first group of judicial auditors in 1995, was appointed president of Macao's Court of Final Appeal on Dec 20, 1999 and held the post for nearly 25 years until Aug 28 this year.

"My job has two parts. The first is to communicate with incumbent Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng and his administrative team to ensure a smooth handover between the fifth-term and sixth-term governments. This part actually started on Nov 1 and is more intensive now. The second is to prepare my administrative team, that is to pick up main officials. The first part is going very smoothly. I am also very grateful to Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng and his administrative team for their close cooperation and strong support," he said.

The newly-elected chief executive said he has already been through a psychological transition. Being a judge, Sam said, it means to be low-profile and keep distance with the public; but becoming a chief executive, he has to be outgoing and socially active. However, being discreet is a prevailing principle for both the roles, he said.

"Be careful in what you say before some important policies are implemented. Only when we reach consensus after listening to broad opinions and having wide discussions can the chief executive make explanations to the public. So being careful in what you say still works. Otherwise, it is easy to mislead the public, cause controversies and even affect social stability," he said.

Macao's incoming chief executive thanks incumbent government for smooth transition

China's Shenzhou-21 astronauts carried out multiple in-orbit tasks in a well-organized manner, including scientific experiments, space station upkeep, equipment maintenance, and health management over the past week, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

The crew consists of mission commander Zhang Lu and astronauts Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang. They have spent over three months in orbit, and are all in good condition. In the field of space medicine, the trio collected blood samples, which will be used to study the patterns of change and adaptation mechanisms in astronauts' bones, nerves, and cerebral vessels during long-duration spaceflight. Using laptops, the crew also conducted experiments related to the effects of long-term exposure to microgravity on upper and lower visual field differences and their cognitive neural mechanisms. In the realm of microgravity physical science, the three astronauts cleaned samples in non-container experimental chambers, performed electrode maintenance, cleaned lens covers, disassembled and reassembled fluid dynamics experimental modules and replaced experimental samples.

In terms of onboard environmental monitoring and equipment maintenance, they used a dew point meter to monitor the thermal environment inside the cabin and conducted air cleanliness tests. They also sorted supplies and cleaned the cabin.

For health management, the astronauts utilized devices with adsorption force to keep their leg muscles strong and completed eye, vision and optic nerve tests.

The Shenzhou-21 manned spacecraft was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Oct 31, 2025. The crew onboard completed their mission's first series of extravehicular activities on Dec 9.

Shenzhou-21 crew proceeds with planned in-orbit tasks smoothly