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When Edmund Ho Hau-wah ran unopposed for his second term as chief executive this summer, his popularity was undeniable. During the two-week campaign period before the vote, he could have gone on holiday and  still won.

But the 49-year-old former accountant, banker and legislator chose to campaign aggressively. Donning a simple shirt, khakis and a broad smile, he met three or four grass-roots organisations and industry associations  seven days a week, listening to their opinions.

Such is his popularity that many residents are beginning to wonder who can step into his shoes as, under the Basic Law, he cannot run for a third term.

Last week,  Mr Ho was ranked first among 281 city mayors in a survey by the Chinese Cities Competitiveness Study Group, a mainland think-tank, ahead of Shenzhen mayor Li Hongzhong   and Beijing mayor Wang Qishan .

Under his leadership, Macau's two biggest headaches of colonial times appear to have been cured. Gang violence was quickly eradicated soon after the handover, and years of a shrinking economy were reversed into an unprecedented boom.

One of Mr Ho's biggest achievements in his first five-year term was liberalising gambling, said Joao Bosco Cheang,  head of the Macau Gaming Industry Workers' Union.

'It took a lot of guts,' Mr Cheang  said. 'Do you think it was easy to terminate the monopoly without angering the old establishment? Do you think there was no discontent among the bosses of VIP rooms? But Mr Ho handled it well.'

Mr Ho's family background  made him an ideal choice as the first chief executive. His father, Ho Yin,  founded Macau's Tai Fung Bank  in 1941 and, more importantly, acted as a link between Beijing and Portugal  before  formal foreign relations were established.

The senior Ho, who died in 1983, was also a member of the National People's Congress Standing Committee and chairman of more than 200 companies in Macau.

He passed on enormous clout to his fifth son who assumed his late father's political posts in Macau, later joining the legislature and the NPC.

But Macau Chamber of Commerce president Hoi Sai-iun said genealogy had little to do with Edmund Ho's success.

'Business leaders did not just give him face, they gave him respect,' said Mr Hoi, recalling when Mr Ho was chamber vice-president before taking his present role.

'Mr Ho has always been a decisive person, and he accumulated through his own experience in-depth knowledge about Macau.'

Meanwhile, Mr  Cheang, who was also Mr  Ho's Primary Six  teacher, attributes the chief executive's success to his humility despite his  family background. 'I taught him the whole year and I never knew he was Ho Yin's son because he never acted like he was superior or should be treated differently,' he said.

It was only when the year-end report cards were returned with a stamp reading 'Ho Yin' that he learned of the relationship.

Mr Ho retained that humility  today and had never claimed Macau's success as his personal trophy, Mr Cheang added.

That modesty may stem from a time when Mr Ho did not enjoy landslide popularity and he probably realises that his own success is intricately tied to Macau's economic success.

In spring 2000, when unemployment climbed to 6.8 per cent, a series of  labour protests and a demonstration against police brutality was seen as a turning point for his administration.

His original strategy had been to value stability over growth. 'Fortify our foundation towards steady, healthy development' was the slogan of his first policy in 2000.

But the  eruption of discontent prompted him to adopt quick-yielding measures, promising 6,000 new jobs, retraining programmes and tightening labour import regulation in his address the following year.

In 2002, income tax was reduced by 25 per cent, while business tax and restaurants' tourism tax were waived.

Student subsidies received an injection of $10 million. Another $10 million assisted single-parent families, the disabled and those suffering from prolonged illness. These temporary measures have differed slightly from year to year, becoming special tools of the Ho administration to reallocate society's resources in an economy where growth is driven almost solely by casinos and tourism.

'If it were not for casino taxes filling up the coffers, Mr Ho would not have the money to give away,'  said legislator Antonio Ng Kuok-cheong.

Beijing's strong support has also been a big factor in Mr Ho's success, with the emerging superpower anxious to prove that the 'one country, two systems' principle works.

'In a way, the chief executive's position is like a fung shui seat,' Mr Ng said. 'Anyone could have been a successful chief executive as long as he didn't make outrageous mistakes.'

Even before Mr Ho took office, mainland authorities helped clean up the crime-ridden city, supporting the capture of notorious triad boss 'Broken Tooth' Wan Kuok-koi  and helping bring his 14K affiliates to justice.

Mr Ho's celebrity politician status was made complete when he met former premier Zhu Rongji  in Beijing on the first handover anniversary. Mr Zhu said  he would give 101 points out of 100 for Mr Ho's performance in  Macau.

Despite Beijing's backing, Li Shuilin,  pre-handover deputy director of Xinhua's  Macau branch, gives Edmund Ho personal credit.

'Even if 'one country, two systems' is a good framework, somebody has to follow the policy and implement it well,' Mr Li said.

'Not everybody has such wisdom.'

In the coming five years, that wisdom will be put to the test,  as unprecedented economic growth is accompanied by an unparalleled set of new problems ranging from a labour shortage to an inefficient bureaucracy and property speculation.

'The chief executive emphasises his administration should anticipate crisis amid prosperity,' said Alex Choi Hang-keung,  assistant professor in public administration at the University of Macau.

'But the fact is, when there is prosperity it is easy to get carried away and very difficult to anticipate crisis.'



The modest chief who rates 101 out of 100