Xia Baolong, the nation’s top official overseeing Hong Kong and Macao affairs, told legislators of the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions on Monday to uphold the executive-led governance model and fully back their SAR government and law-based governance through their constructive input.

Xia, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks at a high-profile seminar on strengthening the executive-led system to ensure better governance and greater administrative efficiency in the Hong Kong and Macao SARs, held in Beijing by the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies.

Representatives from the two SARs’ executive, legislative and judicial branches attended the seminar remotely.

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Xia, also director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, said the executive-led system is an essential principle in the design of the political system of the SARs, and serves as the institutional guarantee for the comprehensive and accurate implementation of “one country, two systems”.

The executive-led system has demonstrated vitality and superiority — particularly manifested in Hong Kong’s progress from stability to prosperity, Xia said, adding that the two SARs must firmly and effectively uphold the system and strive to improve it continuously to enhance governance efficiency — a goal that relies on synergy between the legislative and judicial branches.

The legislative and judicial branches must work on the “same stage” with the government, rather than undermine each other, Xia said.

As Hong Kong and Macao each elected a new-term legislature last year, Xia said the new lawmakers should deepen their patriotic commitment, show initiative in their respective SARs’ reform and development, dedicate themselves to public service, participate diligently in legislative affairs, and project a respectable public profile.

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Xia also said that the two SAR governments — under their respective chief executives — must act as “the primary stewards” of local governance and bear responsibility for rallying their local legislature, judiciary and local society to actively dovetail with the nation’s broader development blueprints, reinforce the cities’ strength and enable higher-quality economic progress.

He said that the two chief executives of the SARs must embed the executive-led principle in “every facet of their governance” and strive for a “highly efficient, results-driven” administration that is able to renew governance thinking and methods that recognize and respond to changes, leverage legal powers for reform, break the grip of entrenched interests to solve deep-seated problems, and get in line with the country’s 15th Five-Year Plan.

He added that the statutory bodies, advisory organizations, and social think tanks must also fully deploy their professional capabilities, while district-level advisory bodies and social groups must robustly fulfill their critical supporting roles.

Contact the writer at wanqing@chinadailyhk.com