Xi meets Macao's incoming chief executive Sam Hou Fai

BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping on Friday met with Sam Hou Fai, who was newly elected as the chief executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) and recently appointed by China's central government.

The meeting took place at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Witnessed by Xi, Premier Li Qiang presented Sam with a decree of the State Council appointing the latter as the sixth-term chief executive of the Macao SAR.

Xi congratulated Sam on his appointment, and commended him for holding a firm stance of loving the country and Macao, conscientiously fulfilling his duties, and making contributions to Macao's prosperity and stability during his long tenure as the president of Macao's Court of Final Appeal.

"In the election, you were nominated and elected by an overwhelming majority, which demonstrates the broad recognition and support from the society of Macao. The central authorities fully acknowledge this and have full trust in you," Xi said.

Over the past 25 years since Macao's return to the motherland, the practice of "one country, two systems" with Macao characteristics has achieved remarkable success, Xi said.

He said that the central authorities will stay committed to fully and faithfully implementing the "one country, two systems" principle under which the people of Macao administer Macao with a high degree of autonomy.

Xi told Sam that assuming the chief executive office comes with significant responsibilities, and urged him to fulfill his mission by leading the new SAR government in uniting various sectors of the Macao society and continuously breaking new ground in the practice of "one country, two systems" with Macao characteristics.

Sam said he felt deeply honored for the appointment and pledged to, under the leadership of President Xi and the central government, implement the "one country, two systems" principle fully, faithfully and unswervingly and lead Macao toward comprehensive progress.

Senior officials including Li Qiang, Cai Qi and Ding Xuexiang attended the meeting.