A survey published on Friday last week by the Chinese-language China Times Weekly magazine showed that the approval rating of Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), who had been very popular with Taipei residents, has fallen to less than 50 percent and he was ranked last in an evaluation of the six special municipality mayors. This should be a warning to the Taipei City Government.
Ko is an unorthodox politician who was liked by the media because he always had direct answers to questions. His off-the-cuff remarks were unexpected and sometimes sounded ridiculous, but they made sense when people thought about them, and that was why the media followed.
However, his success has also been his downfall: He speaks freely, but too fast, and says whatever comes to mind, which either offends people and hurts his colleagues or causes him to have to work a lot harder to get things done. Ko’s decreasing popularity is a direct result of his loose tongue.
Ko has attacked big businesses, such as the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), Farglory Group and the Taipei Dome project, Radium Life Tech Co and the MeHAS City project in New Taipei City’s Xindian District (新店) and Terry Gou (郭台銘) over the Syntrend Creative Park (三創園區). His quips were refreshing at first, but, with the exception of the Syntrend case, the issues have been bogged down in legal proceedings.
The demolition of the Zhongxiao Bridge might have highlighted the city government’s efficiency, but the handling of the historic Mitsui Warehouse degenerated into a war of words, this time with Taipei’s cultural establishment.
The advantage of being an independent political greenhorn is having no baggage, but it also means that Ko has no one to back him up. Pan-blue councilors treat him as the enemy, while pan-green councilors do not necessarily see him as an ally. Ko does not have established political connections that he can rely on; he only has the temporary support of voters.
Ko had to rush to put together a governing team, but failed to establish a consensus, which has led to many controversies. This is why former deputy mayor Chou Li-fang (周麗芳), former commissioner for sports Yang Chung-ho (楊忠和), former commissioner for research, development and evaluation Chen Ming-hsun (陳銘薰), former commissioner for cultural affairs Ni Chung-hwa (倪重華), former commissioner for the Rapid Transportation System Chou Lie-liung (周禮良), former EasyCard Corp chairman Tai Chi-chuan (戴季全) and former Taipei Rapid Transit Corp president Sun Yi-chun (孫以濬) resigned. With the highest staff turnover of the six special municipalities, it is not surprising things are not going smoothly in Taipei.
Encouraging public participation in city policy has been one of Ko’s trademarks, but the mechanisms for public participation, such as the Residents’ Coffee Shop, i-Voting, Mobile City Political Conference, participatory budgeting and the Shezidao (社子島) development project, have all been criticized for either being ill-conceived or for degenerating into formalities. Ko uses them as a shield: When he cannot make up his mind, he resorts to i-Voting.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Pasuya Yao (姚文智) said he is willing to run for Taipei mayor in the 2018 local elections.
If it comes to pass, the alliance between Ko and the DPP would weaken and if Ko cannot revive his government, it would become a paper tiger.
To save himself, Ko must reshuffle his team and surround himself with experienced people who can work together. He also needs a spokesperson who can save him from himself.
The city government must speak with one voice, integrate the policies of different departments, reformulate how things are done and reshape the image of the Taipei City Government.
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