The Ministry of the Interior's plan to put the two special municipalities of Taipei City and Kaohsiung City, counties and cities all on the same level prompted an immediate backlash from the Taipei City Government, which believes lowering the city's status is a DPP election ploy. The Kaohsiung City Government, however, has accepted the idea.
Taipei has long been the political and economic hub of the nation and enjoyed the best in terms of finance, infrastructure, power and media coverage. To put Taipei or Kaohsiung on the same level as the 18 counties and five cities would be like pulling two of the Greek gods down from Olympus. Taipei's misgivings are understandable.
Politically speaking, the counties and cities have been equal with the two special municipalities, in that they have been directly under the Executive Yuan's control ever since the Taiwan Provincial Government was downsized. But a vast gap remains between Taipei and Kaohsiung and the others in terms of tax revenues, administrative power and infrastructure subsidies provided by the central government. The leaders of the two special municipalities also enjoy the privilege of making speeches in Cabinet meetings. These inequalities have led to a lot of resentment, which is why the two special municipalities, counties and cities should now be treated equally.
Earlier this year Taipei postponed elections for borough and neighborhood leaders in order to redraw the boundaries of the city's districts. The city government was willing to take the central government to court over the matter, saying if the boundaries were not changed then the city's development would be affected by the inequalities between boroughs. That argument sounds suspiciously similar to the central government's rationale for trying to level the playing field now. So why does Taipei have a hard time accepting the idea?
Taipei's streets are well-maintained and well-lit and the city offers good utility services while Taipei County suffers from uneven roads, broken street lights and a relatively poor water supply. It's no wonder Taipei County residents feel that they are being treated as second-class citizens. Kaohsiung County frequently complains about big companies building polluting factories in the county, while setting up their corporate headquarters in Kaohsiung City or even Taipei City, thereby allowing those cities to reap the tax revenues. These are the side effects of uneven development.
Actually, it is time that all of Taiwan's administrative divisions were overhauled. The government should draw up new district and financial systems based on economies of scale and push for the necessary amendments to the Law Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (
Even after such a readjustment, Taipei and Kaohsiung cities will still continue to attract more than their share of investment and development. That is only natural. In fact, as the nation's capital, Taipei should also get some preferential treatment in order to maintain the city's competitiveness among international metropolises.
Could Asia be on the verge of a new wave of nuclear proliferation? A look back at the early history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which recently celebrated its 75th anniversary, illuminates some reasons for concern in the Indo-Pacific today. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently described NATO as “the most powerful and successful alliance in history,” but the organization’s early years were not without challenges. At its inception, the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty marked a sea change in American strategic thinking. The United States had been intent on withdrawing from Europe in the years following
My wife and I spent the week in the interior of Taiwan where Shuyuan spent her childhood. In that town there is a street that functions as an open farmer’s market. Walk along that street, as Shuyuan did yesterday, and it is next to impossible to come home empty-handed. Some mangoes that looked vaguely like others we had seen around here ended up on our table. Shuyuan told how she had bought them from a little old farmer woman from the countryside who said the mangoes were from a very old tree she had on her property. The big surprise
The issue of China’s overcapacity has drawn greater global attention recently, with US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen urging Beijing to address its excess production in key industries during her visit to China last week. Meanwhile in Brussels, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last week said that Europe must have a tough talk with China on its perceived overcapacity and unfair trade practices. The remarks by Yellen and Von der Leyen come as China’s economy is undergoing a painful transition. Beijing is trying to steer the world’s second-largest economy out of a COVID-19 slump, the property crisis and
As former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wrapped up his visit to the People’s Republic of China, he received his share of attention. Certainly, the trip must be seen within the full context of Ma’s life, that is, his eight-year presidency, the Sunflower movement and his failed Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, as well as his eight years as Taipei mayor with its posturing, accusations of money laundering, and ups and downs. Through all that, basic questions stand out: “What drives Ma? What is his end game?” Having observed and commented on Ma for decades, it is all ironically reminiscent of former US president Harry