Since 1995, Global Views Monthly (遠見雜誌) has been conducting annual telephone surveys on local residents’ satisfaction with their county commissioners’ or city mayors’ performances. Due to the polling techniques and differences in public sentiments between the urban and rural areas, there is often a gap between the poll results and actual performance.
In this year’s survey, respondents were asked whether they were “satisfied” or “dissatisfied” with the overall performance of their commissioner or mayor since taking office. They were then asked to grade the overall performance and provide their opinion on whether performance in eight specific areas — education, environmental protection, public order, transportation, healthcare, tourism, firefighting and the economy — had “improved,” become “worse,” or remained “the same.”
Clearly, such satisfaction surveys reflect the subjective views of local residents, often influenced by their personal favoritism toward the politician, rather than offering an objective “evaluation” of local government performance.
For generations, my family and I have lived in Taitung County. The county commissioners have consistently received the highest “5-star” rating or at least a “4-star” rating in the surveys. While I do not deny the efforts of the commissioners, the more significant reason might lie in the honest and simple nature of Taitung residents.
The Taitung County Government only needs to make basic efforts to earn the public’s support, unlike the residents of Taipei, who have higher expectations. As former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) once remarked, it is difficult for a Taipei mayor’s approval rating to exceed 60 percent. Even after successfully hosting the 2017 Taipei Universiade, Ko’s approval was just slightly above 50 percent.
Similarly, despite successfully holding the recent World Masters Games, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) approval rate only rose to 60 percent.
None of the major development projects in Taitung, including the Jhihben (知本) recreational park, the deep sea water center and the Taitung Miramar Resort (美麗灣) build-operate-transfer project, have been successful. Yet, remarkably, local residents continue to offer their recognition and support.
Public administration has entered the era of “public management,” which attaches great importance to strategic and objective management. This approach involves constructing a performance evaluation system and establishing key performance indicators.
Evaluation is not merely about assigning grades, but is about identifying administrative flaws and uncovering blind spots during the process. Therefore, the Cabinet’s National Development Council should implement a comprehensive evaluation system for assessing local governments’ overall performance.
Furthermore, when the media evaluate the administrative performance of local governments, in addition to subjective satisfaction surveys, it would be more effective to reference objective government information provided by the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics. This would allow for a more accurate selection of outstanding commissioners and mayors.
Chen Chien-hsien is the chairman of the Taitung County Sports Development Foundation and an assistant professor in Meiho University’s Department of Social Work.
Translated by Eddy Chang
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