President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) might support a proposal to upgrade “Greater Hsinchu” to a special municipality statues, a senior official said yesterday.
In an interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the sister paper of the Taipei Times) on Monday, Hsinchu Mayor Lin Chih-chien (林智堅) of the DPP said that a merger of Hsinchu city and county would benefit the region.
On Tuesday, the Cabinet said that it has not discussed the proposal.
However, Tsai, who is DPP chairperson, and high-ranking members of the party, including Secretary-General Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀), might support the plan, an official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
As of the end of last month, the county and city had a combined population of 1.03 million, official data showed.
This figure is lower than the 1.25 million threshold for a special municipality, which is stipulated in the Local Government Act (地方制度法).
The threshold would have to be lowered to 1 million to form a “Greater Hsinchu” special municipality, the source said, adding that a new mechanism for changing the nation’s administrative structure might also have to be created.
The changes should be completed during the current session of the Legislative Yuan, as it would be the last opportunity to amend laws before local elections next year, they said.
Lawmakers could draft a bill to allow the Cabinet or local governments to propose mergers, they said.
The creation of five special municipalities while former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was in office was initiated by his Cabinet, which indicates that a top-down approach might be more effective, they said.
The official said allegations that Lin made the proposal to rally support for his re-election bid were misleading, as a merger would dilute the DPP’s urban base. Hsinchu County has more eligible voters than Hsinchu City, with the county being home to sizeable Hakka communities that do not tend to vote for the DPP, they said.
“Lin is not trying to boost selfish political interests; he is trying to create a better future for Greater Hsinchu,” they said.
The Cabinet’s cautious approach to the proposal is understandable, as it would be responsible for dealing with a merger’s political and fiscal effects, they said.
Asked to comment, the Executive Yuan said that it is open-minded, but has no stance on the proposal.
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