Wed, Aug 20, 2014 page8

• The Liberty Times Editorial: Politicking adds to tragedy of blasts

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  After the rescue efforts following the gas pipeline explosions in Greater Kaohsiung on July 31 and Aug. 1 were completed, the relief operation entered the clear-up phase.

  When reconstructing areas affected by disasters, the first task is generally to apply for an emergency disbursement from the competent authority, and the NT$1.91 billion (US$63.7 million) that the Greater Kaohsiung Government requested from the central government fully complies with the stipulation in the Budget Act (預算法) stating that, in the event of an emergency or major calamity, the Executive Yuan can mobilize a secondary reserve fund.

  Given this, it is impossible to understand the reasons behind Premier Jiang Yi-huah’s (江宜樺) decision to procrastinate on greenlighting the requested funds, or what his objective may have been. One would hope that he is not eschewing basic human decency for the sake of political maneuvering.

  The NT$1.91 billion that the city government applied for is predominantly to fund the reconstruction of damaged roads and water culverts in the disaster zone. Initially, the municipality’s Public Works Bureau had estimated that this would cost NT$1.2 billion, but following an inter-bureau discussion, it was agreed that this amount would have to be raised to cover not only the removal of the piping, but also a complete redesign of the utility pipeline network at the same time, so that the job can be completed in one go.

  Fulfilling such a simple request in these circumstances allows local authorities to restore a basic semblance of normalcy to the lives of residents affected by a disaster, so an effective central government would approve the disbursement application without delay.

  Given this, who would have thought that, after meeting with the concerned departments, Jiang and the Cabinet over which he presides would meet the request with reservations over three items that the Greater Kaohsiung Government asked for?

  The use of the term “soared” by the spokesperson who announced the decision expressed the central government’s opinion on the increased amount of money requested. That made even the most jaded political watchers — who are all too familiar with the disingenuous machinations of politicians — bristle. Why was the central government behaving like this? If it was attempting to discredit the Greater Kaohsiung Government, this would surely be lost on the public anyway.

  Several factors add to the confusion over this behavior:

  First, the city government did not actually request any of the three items that Jiang seemed to have such strong reservations about — that a special law be enacted, a special budget allocated and an ad hoc institution established to handle the reconstruction work. It simply submitted a request for NT$1.9 billion in relief and reconstruction funds and said that it would discuss later how the money was to be repaid. Why was Jiang so insistent on prevaricating, complicating matters and shifting the focus?

  Second, the central government asked Greater Kaohsiung to first use its reserve funds and disaster relief funds to pay for the reconstruction. All local county and city governments are required to hold back 1 percent of their allocated budgets for this purpose.

  Greater Kaohsiung received a budget of about NT$130 billion for this year, which translates into a disaster reserve fund of almost NT$1.3 billion, but by the time of the explosions, this had already been whittled down to less than half of that amount — NT$500 million — by expenditure to deal with the impact of typhoons.

  Local governments’ finances are tight as it is, and their budgets must also be used to carry out everyday responsibilities. This is why the Greater Kaohsiung Government applied for financial relief on this occasion. One would think that Jiang would have recognized this and if not, would have at least looked into the matter prior to making a decision on the emergency funds request. How is it that, in such a modestly sized country, the central government can be so out of touch with what is going on beyond the walls of the capital?

  Third, if this response had come from some bean counter in accounting, it could be put down to being a classic office clerk reply. However, given the nature of this particular case, the problem is that Jiang is no office clerk, he is the head of the government, and yet, he seems to have absolutely no grasp of the gravity of the emergency, or command over the decisionmaking that the situation requires.

  If the Executive Yuan opts not to use the second reserve when up against the worst industrial accident to hit the nation in 50 years, what exactly would induce it to use the money? Perhaps it is waiting for Double Ten National Day celebrations, or for seeing in the New Year, when it can splash out on a nice fireworks display to congratulate itself for another good year at the nation’s helm.

  Furthermore, Executive Yuan spokesperson Sun Li-chyun’s (孫立群) announcement of the Cabinet’s response to Greater Kaohsiung’s request betrayed an alarming unfamiliarity with how government finances are handled, as he did not seem to be aware that every expenditure needs to be invoiced, nor that cost estimates for post-disaster reconstruction efforts are often raised as the situation on the ground develops.

  It is important to ascertain that the money is truly needed and will be put to good use, but in this respect, Sun’s brazen presumption that the Greater Kaohsiung Government was pushing the biscuit trying to get more money than was strictly required was both insensitive and unprofessional. The Executive Yuan ought to be ashamed of itself.

  Seeing Jiang and President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) go down to the southern municipality to examine the disaster area recalls the time that former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) went to central Taiwan after the 921 Earthquake and how he took the head of the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics along so the latter could see what needed to be done to address the needs of the areas hit by the quake. That Lee was largely successful in his handling of the catastrophe is reflected in that few questioned if his trip was just political posturing. In assessing its response to this disaster, the central government needs to be honest with itself and ask if it has been guilty of holding back.

  The Executive Yuan is responsible for the whole of Taiwan, from north to south. It does not exist solely for the chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), nor to be motivated exclusively by considerations of how much political capital it can wring out of a disaster to help the party win more votes.

  It would be preferable to believe that the president and the premier are incompetent and lack the requisite virtues to handle such matters, rather than to think that they are intentionally up to no good.

  However, that will take some persuading, for the Executive Yuan has been properly sitting on its hands in this instance.

  The situation in Greater Kaohsiung could have been assessed in the immediate aftermath of the explosions. The municipality needed the central government to deploy the second reserve fund to address the local administration’s budgetary shortfall and allow it to initiate comprehensive reconstruction of the disaster-hit areas, as well as give local residents their due justice.

  Translated by Paul Cooper
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