Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) yesterday said that, if elected president, he hopes to attend the inauguration ceremony of the company’s new facility in Wisconsin next year as the Republic of China (ROC) president alongside US President Donald Trump.
Gou, who is vying for the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential nomination, made the remarks in an interview with talk show host Huang Wei-han (黃暐瀚) on Pop Radio.
The facility under construction at the Wisconn Valley Science and Technology Park would be completed in May next year, Gou said.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Asked whether he would attend the inauguration ceremony if he is elected president in January next year, Gou said: “This is part of my plan, but all I can say now is that I am working on it.”
Asked if Trump could attend the ceremony, Gou said: “Probably, if not, why would I go? I have already left the company and by that time I would be the president of the ROC.”
The two of them meeting at the ceremony would be a “win-win situation” and he is confident about it, he said.
If elected president, he would wear his signature baseball cap embroidered with the ROC flag when visiting the US, he added.
While many have questioned the viability of his plan to provide a NT$15,000 (US$481) monthly subsidy for every child aged six or under, Gou said he is confident that he can secure funding for the policy.
With the number of newborns estimated at about 180,000 per year, the policy would need NT$180 billion to begin with, he said.
The government already has a childcare budget of NT$60 billion and he would secure NT$50 billion by imposing a wealth tax on rich people and obtain an additional NT$70 billion through investments with government funds, Gou said.
Asked if rich people would move abroad to evade the tax, Gou said Taiwan is not the EU, so it is difficult for rich Taiwanese to dodge taxes through emigration.
Former New Taipei City mayor and KMT presidential candidate Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday again said Gou’s plan would be difficult to implement.
Since Gou announced the plan, no experienced government official or financial expert has said it would be possible to implement, Chu told a news conference in Taipei.
Last year, only 123 people paid more than NT$100 million in income tax, he said, adding: “Not everyone is like Terry Gou.”
Without income, there would be no taxes, and “this is the basics of imposing taxes,” he said.
Gou’s plan to make investments with government funds also requires more deliberation, he said.
Many government funds have been established for specific purposes and cannot be used for other purposes, he said.
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