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Huang Jun-ying strikes mayoral pose

By Stephanie Low
STAFF REPORTER
Monday, Nov 25, 2002, Page 3

TT: You were not interested in running for the Kaohsiung City mayor post at first but later decided to join the race after KMT officials persuaded you to run. What made you change your mind?

Huang Jun-ying (黃俊英): I don't deny that their persuasive efforts played a crucial role in my decision. On the other hand, I was born in Kaohsiung City and have worked and lived here for a long time. I have deep feelings for this city, and they run deeper and deeper as I grow older. Over the past few years, I have witnessed Kaohsiung's decline. Kaohsiung used to be the locomotive of Taiwan's economic development, but now it is losing its economic status. It worries me very much to see this happening. As cities in other parts of Taiwan, such as Tainan, Taichung, Hsinchu and Taipei, and cities in China and Southeast Asia are developing quickly, Kaohsiung will be marginalized if it doesn't catch up.

My four-year service as deputy mayor of Kaohsiung brought me into direct contact with the city's administration. Also, with my expertise in economics and management, I have a comprehensive understanding of Kaohsiung's urban problems. And so when my friends encouraged me to join the election, it created a sense of mission and motivated me to do something for Kaohsiung.

Originally, I did not plan to run for mayor. But the timing made me feel that my candidacy would be beneficial to the development of Kaohsiung.

Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) administration may have merits when it comes to preserving the city's cultural heritage, but the economy is the shortcoming of Hsieh's stewardship. What Kaohsiung really needs is basic industrial development. Hsieh has not worked out any measures to help traditional industries. I'm an expert in marketing and economics, and I know many people from these fields; so I feel that I can do something for Kaohsiung.

TT: What policies would you try to implement to improve Kaohsiung's economy after getting elected?

Huang: Over the long run, Kaohsiung must make the most of its advantages in order to boost its economy. Kaohsiung has a harbor, an international airport and an excellent industrial foundation. It has a lot of land for development and many scenic spots. It has always been an important industrial metropolis with many advantages.

One of my economic policies is to work for direct air and shipping links between Kaohsiung and major cities in China. By cooperating with the central government and providing adequate incentives, I'll actively develop Kaohsiung into a free port facilitating the free flow of talent, capital, technology and goods. Kaohsiung is already a gateway for trade and a logistics center, but I can turn Kaohsiung into a business operational hub in the Asia-Pacific region.

But the opening of direct transport links is not something to be decided by Kaohsiung, because it involves amendments of related laws. Still, we must make the effort to achieve this goal.

TT: As we all know, the authority over the opening of direct transport links with China is in the hand of the central government, not a local government. If you are elected, how are you going to lobby the central government to lift the ban on direct transport links?

Huang: The relationship between the central and local governments is not like the way it was in the past. While the central and local governments were like father and son, they are partners now. For the sake of urban development, we must fight for our rights. We must unite representatives from Kaohsiung and those from other localities in southern Taiwan. All the people's representatives across party lines from around the country should work together to promote this goal. Kaohsiung City will not be the only locality to benefit from direct transport, as neighboring localities and Taiwan's economy will benefit as well.

We are not confronting the central government. We must emphasize that opening direct transport links with China will revitalize the economy of southern Taiwan and maybe even Taiwan itself. This is a convincing line of reasoning for most people. Who will cooperate with you if this project is beneficial to Kaohsiung only? We must communicate with others and show them how such a plan could help their economies.

Some people have said that because I'm from the KMT, the DPP-ruled central government and DPP-controlled neighboring localities would not cooperate with me even after I get elected. How is this possible? Would the president and central government benefit from it if Kaohsiung is not properly developed? We must remember that people share a common destiny in Taiwan.

TT: So far, you are the opposition candidate with the most support, but your support rating still lags far behind Hsieh's. What are the chances that you will unseat Hsieh?

Huang: This is normal for a challenger. The latest poll conducted by the United Daily showed that I am still behind Hsieh by 11 percentage points. This is already very close. In the election for Keelung mayor last year, the KMT candidate, Hsu Tsai-li (許財利), defeated the DPP's Lee Chin-yung (李進勇) despite the fact that Hsu lagged behind Lee by 12 percentage points in a survey released one week before polling day.

This was mainly because around 30 percent of the electorate had not made a decision as to which candidate to vote for. In a survey conducted by National Sun Yat-sen University before the last Kaohsiung mayoral election, Mayor Wu Dun-yih (吳敦義) led Hsieh by 18 percentage points. Opinion polls are for reference only. The position always goes to the one who gets second place in opinion polls.

TT: During the final weeks before polling day, how are you going to try to catch up with Hsieh? Now that the effort to integrate the opposition candidates has failed, do you plan to encourage strategic voting among supporters of the opposition camp to increase your chance of victory?

Huang: I'll do my job at my own pace and allow voters to get a better understanding of me. I'll try to make them realize that I will be an attentive and professional mayor with strengths in planning, communication and action.

I achieved many things that originally were impossible during my office as deputy mayor of Kaohsiung.

For instance, the merger of the teacher's research center and the civil servants' training center, which dragged out for many years with little progress because of strong opposition from the teachers. But I managed to complete the task with constant communication. Another case was the zoning of the Tsaishan Park, where building restrictions were enforced.

When up to 60 percent of the people do not wish to see Hsieh get re-elected, we anticipate that voters will integrate their votes automatically. I believe everybody understands by now that they must centralize their votes and vote for the candidate standing the best chance to win, or they will be wasting their votes.
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