The second anniversary of President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) inauguration has passed and we have entered a new phase. By now, Tsai should be clear on what her administration did right and wrong, and what the reasons were for the successes and failures. If she has a thorough understanding of these issues, she might still outdo herself in the years ahead.
Why stress the importance of surpassing herself? This is simple: The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) regained power in 2016 due to public dissatisfaction with the performance of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) during its eight-year tenure.
Representing the DPP, Tsai has no competition, and so she must compete with herself. The situation was the same during the presidencies of Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
If these popularly elected leaders cannot surpass themselves, they will become the driving force behind the next power transfer.
A president that does not know themselves well and engages in self-reflection after stepping down might be used to its advantage by a competing party, as happened with both Chen and Ma. Tsai is not reckless and she it is likely that she will learn from her predecessors.
Tsai made a major adjustment in September last year when she replaced then-premier Lin Chuan (林全) with Tainan mayor William Lai (賴清德), along with a minor Cabinet reshuffle.
Basically, all presidents since Taiwan’s first direct presidential election in 1996 have taken the same view: What I say goes because I led my party to victory. As a result, the constitutional division of powers is treated as a reference at best.
Lin and Lai have simply been chief executive officers authorized to execute decisions made by the president. It only makes sense, then, that observers grade the performance of the person holding power, who should be held accountable at every anniversary of their inauguration.
A look at improvements to the Cabinet over the past year, including replacement of the leaders of the National Development Council, the Financial Supervisory Commission and the Ministry of Education, shows that an organization’s emphasis on its internal discipline is at best a “passive parameter,” while top officials maintaining a clear image and showing real leadership are an “active parameter” that guides the public’s perception of government performance.
Taiwan’s civil service is quite stable and it is the same civil servants that perform their duties regardless of which party is in power.
The most effective way for the DPP to make a favorable policy impression on the public would be for its political appointees to take the lead.
In the face of the various tests and challenges in the year ahead, Tsai should give Cabinet ministers greater power to make policy suggestions. For government agencies to play their roles well, Tsai must delegate her powers.
One commentator said that Tsai has been so busy that she often looks pale, but her efforts have not improved government performance. She has recently defended herself, saying that when the time comes, she believes the public would feel that this is a very serious and hardworking government.
However, reviews so far point out the same problem: Successful leadership does not lie in micromanagement. Rather, it is about pressing the right button to get the state apparatus moving.
Some say that this is a matter of personality. This is where Tsai should surpass herself.
Tzou Jiing-wen is the editor-in-chief of the Liberty Times (the sister newspaper of the Taipei Times).
Translated by Eddy Chang
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