Hualien County has been a rising star among the nation’s counties, having been able to repay more than NT$1.2 billion (US$40 million) of its debt and NT$600 million in interest, as well as achieving positive growth in almost all sectors.
In a recent interview with the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper), independent Hualien County Commissioner Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) said Hualien residents can see with their own eyes how far the county has come during the four years under his governance, rather than just rely on what he called cold statistics.
Fu said he wanted a general and balanced development for the county and that he endeavored to give equal attention to education, finance, environmental protection and the county’s visibility in terms of the international community.
Faced with a daunting NT$13.3 billion debt from the previous commissioner, Fu made debt repayment his primary goal, based on the concept that one should not burden future generations with the debts of their forebears.
Fu’s efforts cleared NT$1.2 billion from the slate and led Hualien to be the only county government to pay back debt for three consecutive years.
“Hualien will only have a future once the county debt has been settled,” Fu said.
Fu said his insistence on paying back debt has not harmed the county’s economic growth; Hualien’s national tax income since he took office has increased by NT$1 billion, or 15 percent, while local revenue has increased by NT$340 million, or 17.4 percent.
Fu also accented the importance of Hualien’s need to connect with the international community and said that his policies have led to exponential growth in international flights passing through Hualien.
The county won second place in the “D” category of Livable Community’s (LivCom) Whole City Awards last year, Fu said, adding that Hualien has made a good start and he hoped to continue to make Hualien a common sight on international event programs.
The LivCom Awards seek to encourage best practices, innovation and leadership in providing a vibrant, environmentally sustainable community that improves the quality of life. The “D” category covers population centers with 150,001 to 400,000 residents.
In terms of education, Hualien was the first county in the nation to implement completely free elementary-school admission by waiving fees for lunch, admission, class aides and books.
Fu has also invested the foremost amount of funding in the county government’s water regulation projects and the its medical tourism industry is also top-notch.
The county’s 3.8 percent unemployment rate is not only lower than the national rate of 4 percent, but the county also ranks second in the nation in the number of people gainfully employed.
Speaking of how he recently visited a pomelo orchard after Typhoon Matmo hit the nation in July, Fu said one of the farmers was extremely touched that he made the visit so soon after the storm.
“I held in my hands the trust the people had [in the county government] and I knew how heavy such burden can be; I hope only to repay their trust with redoubled efforts [on beneficial policies,]” Fu said, adding that he has donated all of his pay as county commissioner every half year.
As of March, he had donated more than NT$8.8 million to help improve the county, he added.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS