Third is to allow talented people from China to develop in Taiwan, thereby bringing in capital from China to help Taiwan. In this way, if in the future China wants to take the extreme action of attacking Taiwan militarily, there will be some misgivings. While China rapidly develops as the world's manufacturing ground, Taiwan can't just sit on the sidelines. We should naturally combine forces and benefit together.
LT: On the third anniversary of your inauguration, you reviewed and attempted to overhaul many of the city government's administrative practices. Are conditions better a year later?
Ma: I don't dare claim there are no shortcomings, but many improvements have indeed been made. So when my opponent criticizes our administration, we are very humble. In the past, I was very dissatisfied with public-works projects, but recently there has been a turn for the better. For example, the Chou-mei highway was completed in November, and the Ketagalan Hall and the Health Center in the Chungshan district will both be completed on schedule. The Bureau of Public Works has done a great job of turning over a new leaf, and the Bureau of Business Management's projects on hillsides are the same.
I admit that Typhoon Nari was the greatest setback of my three-plus years in office, but we got back on our feet very quickly after this failure. And the people of Taipei have looked leniently on the overall response of the city government. Some people say, "Be careful because Nari is your Achilles heel." But I believe it will only be my Achilles heel if I make the same mistake again.
TRANSLATED BY ETHAN HARKNESS
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