President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday dismissed criticism of his plan to rezone administrative districts, saying it was a way to raise the nation’s competitiveness and was not aimed at increasing his party’s election prospects.
Ma, who doubles as chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), said the plan would integrate local resources and make it easier to implement government policies.
“The government has never made drastic changes in administrative districts and we don’t want to delay the plan now that we’ve determined to do it,” Ma said yesterday when meeting township chiefs in Taoyuan County in his capacity as KMT chairman.
PHOTO: HUANG MEI-CHU, TAIPEI TIMES
“As the nation’s leader, I am concerned about the next generation, not the next election,” he said.
Under the plan, Taichung City and County will merge next year and become a special municipality, as will Tainan City and County. Taipei County will also be upgraded to a special municipality.
Under the revised Local Government Act (地方制度法), township chiefs and mayors in the affected cities and counties will be reappointed as directors, while township councilors will become their advisers.
Ma urged township heads not to worry about the changes as the government would help them during the transition.
Ma also campaigned yesterday for KMT legislative by-election candidate Apollo Chen (陳學聖) in Taoyuan and called on party members to work toward victory in the Feb. 27 polls.
Ma acknowledged the party’s defeat in last month’s legislative by-elections and said the party needed to win the next round of by-elections.
“The legislative by-elections are an important battle for the KMT and we cannot afford to lose this time,” he said.
In response to the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) criticism of Chen for not being a Taoyuan native, Ma said Chen had served as director of Taoyuan County’s Department of Cultural Affairs and had served in the county for three years, urging the voters to give him their support.
The Feb. 27 polls will fill seats left vacant in Taoyuan, Hualien, Hsinchu and Chiayi counties after legislators in those districts were elected as county commissioners in December.
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