Mon, Oct 07, 2002 page3

• Newsmakers: KMT lawmaker Hsu keeps on truckin' despite setbacks

  STAYING STRONG Controversy is rarely far from Hsu Shu-po, convener of the Legislative Yuan's Economics and Energy Committee, but he has managed to hang on

  • By Stephanie Low / STAFF REPORTER
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  Amid allegations of influence pedaling, KMT Legislator Hsu Shu-po (許舒博) was elected convener of the legislature's Economics and Energy Committee last week.

  DPP lawmakers have suggested that Hsu, a long-time member of the committee, lobbied on behalf of some illegal quarry operators along the Choshui River (濁水溪) in central Taiwan.

  

  KMT Legislator Hsu Shu-po, convener of the legislature's Economics and Energy Committee, has climbed the political ladder despite controversies that have plagued his career.

  PHOTO: CNA

  According to DPP Legislator Su Chih-fen (蘇治芬), Hsu allegedly assisted quarry operators in bribing officials from the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Water Resources Agency so that their quarry operations would be legalized.

  Hsu, however, dismissed Su's allegations as "farfetched," saying he was the one who pushed through a set of strict regulations to control quarrying activities three years ago.

  He also said he has worked with the police on numerous occasions to crack down on the illegal quarrying operations.

  The recent accusations have not been the first time Hsu has aroused suspicion in his three terms as a legislator.

  No stranger to controversy

  Questions were raised about Hsu's role when it was disclosed that his family, who runs the Transworld Institute of Technology (環球技術學院), rents the institute's offices from the Taiwan Sugar Corporation for only NT$8 a ping. Hsu serves on the institute's board.

  State-run enterprises are under the management of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and thus are subject to supervision by the Economics and Energy Committee.

  Early start

  Raised in a family with both political and business interests, Hsu was first elected a legislator in 1995 at the age of 32, winning 67,076 votes -- the highest number in his constituency in Yunlin County.

  He set a record of becoming the youngest member of the KMT's Central Standing Committee in 50 years when he was first elected to the committee in 2000.

  Analysts have generally attributed Hsu's early success to the extensive contact that his family has maintained with various local communities.

  In addition to the support of the influential political clan established by his father, the clout enjoyed by Hsu's in-laws within the construction and tourism industries has been another valuable resource in his political career.

  "Like most traditional politicians, he built his campaign network on the support of vote captains (樁腳)," said DPP Legislator Lin Kuo-hua (林國華), who is also from Yunlin County.

  Hsu Shu-po's father, Hsu Wen-tsu (許文志), was commissioner of Yunlin County for eight years until he was appointed head of the Taiwan Provincial Government's Department of Reconstruction in 1990.

  In 1994 he was promoted again, this time as the provincial government's secretary-general.

  Hsu Wen-tsu held several other important government positions, including head of the KMT's Department of Organization and national policy adviser to former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), until his retirement in 2000.

  Bumpy road

  Hsu Shu-po's political climb has not been without setbacks.

  Hsu failed his first legislative bid in 1992 by 1,000 votes.

  In 1999, he vied for the KMT's nomination to run in the by-election for Yunlin County commissioner held after the death of commissioner Su Wen-hsiung (蘇文雄).

  The KMT first decided to nominate Hsu but later changed its mind, triggering strong protest from the legislator.

  The opposition from local political factions in rivalry to the Hsu family was reportedly responsible for the twist, as there was anxiety among these factions that the political leverage of the Hsu family would continue to expand if Hsu won the position of commissioner.

  Su Chih-fen, who was also elected from Yunlin County, said the decline in the number of votes won by Hsu in the legislative elections indicates that the influence of the Hsu family in Yunlin County is waning.

  Compared with his overwhelming victory in 1995, the number of votes won by Hsu Shu-po dropped to 45,648 during his 1998 re-election bid. Last year, the number further slid to 31,886, making Hsu the winner with the least votes in Yunlin County.

  Su attributed the downward trend to the controversies surrounding Hsu Shu-po.

  "A key problem is the bus-inesses run by his family," Su said.
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