A report in the Chinese-language Mirror Media magazine about allegations that Kaohsiung City Councilor Jane Lee (李眉蓁), the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) candidate for the Aug. 15 Kaohsiung mayoral by-election, plagiarized almost her entire master’s thesis has brought politicians’ degrees to the forefront and revisited the deep-seated problem of government officials “whitewashing” their education level.
In an obvious tit-for-tat move, the KMT on Saturday held a news conference where it cast doubt on the authenticity of theses by a list of prominent Democratic Progressive Party politicians.
While the KMT regurgitated information that has already been proven false, it also made some allegations that merit clarification from the institutions and individuals accused.
Specifically, KMT officials said that a graduate institute — attended by members of various political parties, including Lee — has been used to “bump up” politicians’ degrees.
Allegations that certain institutions conferred degrees on politicians in exchange for favors are not new, and the incident involving Lee provides an opportunity to scrutinize the problem.
Control Yuan members and lawmakers on the legislature’s Education and Culture Committee should order the Ministry of Education to investigate whether quid pro quo arrangements have taken place and, more importantly, root out such backroom dealings from the nation’s higher education system.
Education officials should not condone this malpractice and ignore it as long as all parties are content with not making waves — that is, until someone with a dubious academic background is nominated for an election. Such tacit acceptance is not only a disgrace to the system, but also an insult to the electorate.
Furthermore, are theses a credential that politicians must have?
Minister Without Portfolio Audrey Tang (唐鳳) on Wednesday was asked that question at a forum in Taipei. She said that people do not have to write a thesis to enter politics, and that she did not become a politician because she had written a thesis.
Regarding her own education, Tang said that she never finished junior-high school, and yet she has published research papers since becoming a politician.
While some might argue that not everyone has an IQ of 180 like Tang, they would be hard-pressed to dismiss independent Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) and Taiwan Statebuilding Party Legislator Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟) — they each have a bachelor’s degree and have never written a thesis, yet they outshine many of their counterparts with post-graduate degrees in terms of their performance at the Legislative Yuan and their dedication to promoting Taiwan as a nation.
Conversely, former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) earned a doctorate of juridical science from Harvard University, but the directions in which he tried to lead the nation were vigorously opposed by many. In particular, his administration’s attempt to forcibly pass the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement triggered one of the most important student-led movements in the nation’s history. His blatantly pro-China remarks after his term as president ended have left many people wondering why he was elected at all.
People cannot be blamed for wanting their political leaders to be highly educated. This phenomenon exists in other nations, too. However, is it better to be led by politicians with meaningless degrees than by someone who upholds the right values and is capable?
If people can look past politicians’ diplomas and focus on their abilities, it would lessen the elitism in politics, and the problem of universities helping politicians whitewash their degrees would be ameliorated. It is politicians’ abilities and the values that they stand for that count, not their diplomas.
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