Abandon Hero Worship, Return to Candidate Character

Abandon Hero Worship, Return to Candidate Character
China Times editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
May 19, 2014

Summary: In the history of elections on Taiwan, elected superstars have almost invariably become tragic figures. Voters elected a self-styled Moses, a Don Quixote who tilted at windmills. Voters eleced a greedy "what's yours is mine" kleptocrat. Voters elected a "New Taiwan 1992 consensus president." Are voters more down to earth today? The old addage urges us to "Elect the wise and the able." Electing politicians who can actually govern in the year end seven in one local elections would be a good start.

Full Text Below: 

The year end election is rapidly approaching. Campaign activities have become more frequent and provocative. Political parties care only about winning. The nomination process is indifferent about whom is chosen. Old or young matter not. Candidates are often nominated purely because of who they are. Nomination rules are often ignored. The politician may be forced to to undergo an ordeal, or his nomination may be pro forma routine. He may assume that he will eventually emerge the victor and wield power. Therefore he may be willing to remain silent. This is why anything migh happen during the year end election, and why chaos could easily erupt.

Have politicians seriously pondered why they seek victory? Is their motive really only lust for power? Consider Taiwan's two most powerful and charismatic politicians. One is currently serving time in a Taichung prison hospital. He suffer from a wide range of physical and mental disorders. Rumor has it he suffers from incontinence, and must change his underwear 30 times a day. The other has a public approval rating of 9.2%, the lowest in history. His "New Taiwan 1992 consensus" is widely ridiculed. He cannot implement any of his policies, making any sort of political accomplishments difficult. These two former political superstars were products of the voters' imagination. Their plight could be described as tragic. But if so, how should we describe the plight of the public? For 16 years their wages have remained stagnant, The gap between rich and poor has widened. Aren't they considerably more deserving of our sympathy?

Consider the situation from a global perspective. Salaries have fallen. The wealth gap has widened. This is a universal problem. But Taiwan's economic fundamentals are strong. It should be doing better. The global economy is undergoing regionalization. Taiwan has no response. It has become increasingly marginalized. Future crises loom. This decline took place over the terms of three presidents. Their popularity and ability were irrelevant. Political parties and politicians seek victory at the polls. Instead, they should be considering what sort of vision they can offer Taiwan after their victories. They should be considering what can they do for the well-being of the people, and not merely for their own popularity.

Taiwan's year end elections will be the largest scale local elections ever held. Candidates include mayors and city councilmen for directly administered municipalities, county chiefs and county councilmen, township mayors and township representatives, seven local village chiefs, and other public officials. Voters will elect officials from six mayors of directly administered municipalities, 16 mayors and county chiefs, and 11,076 other public officials, in an election known as the "seven in one elections." The seven in one elections are basically local elections. The candidates' policy platforms need not include such issues as "national identity" and "Taiwan's primacy." The candidates need not engage in illusory "spittle wars," but should get back to matters of public welfare. They should remain realistic and pragmatic. Voters should pay attention to the candidate's character and behavior, and in particular to the candidates' personnel appointments. Voters on Taiwan have been through numerous elections, large and small. By now they ought to know better. They ought to realize that voting for a Messiah or a Superstar is unrealistic, regardless of whether the candidate will govern a nation, a city, or even a local body.

Nearly 20 years have passed since the 1996 presidential elections. We can go even further back, to 1946, when the Taiwan Provincial Administrative Executive Office held elections on behalf of the people of each township. This was followed by public elections for county senators. County senators were elected on Taiwan when the provincial authorities conducted the first ever post-war elections. In 1986, the Democratic Progressive Party participated in the Legislative Yuan and National Assembly elections. As of today, they have done so for nearly 30 years.

But how well do politicians and voters understand the nature and value of the electoral system?

Voters need to understand that in a democratic political environment, the most important factor is how one votes. Alas, voters on Taiwan feel little responsibility about the manner in which they vote. Before the election, voters are passionate. They show tremendous interest in the race. When the election is over, they are eager to see who won. Some are happy. Others are sad. It is as if everything is over. This voter mentality leads politicians to make indiscriminate campaign promises before the election. Before the election they deceive voters by promising "All you can eat!" After the election, the voters are dismayed when they learn the reality: "You will be eaten by all!" They will bicker endlessly while violations of the law are rationalized away.

In fact, all of this could have been avoided before the election. But only if voters had a sense of responsibility and valued their votes. But only if Blue and Green camp voters refused to be manipulated by campaign tactics. But only if they calmly and carefully voted for candidates on the basis of competency, public service, and their contribution to national progress. There would be no need for one social movement after another, destroying the political framework and dividing the social fabric of the nation.

In the history of elections on Taiwan, elected superstars have almost invariably become tragic figures. Voters elected a self-styled Moses, a Don Quixote who tilted at windmills. Voters eleced a greedy "what's yours is mine" kleptocrat. Voters elected a "New Taiwan 1992 consensus president." Are voters more down to earth today? The old addage urges us to "Elect the wise and the able." Electing politicians who can actually govern in the year end seven in one local elections would be a good start.

社論－拋棄英雄崇拜 回歸候選人本質
2014年05月19日 04:10

年底選舉愈來愈近，政治活動漸趨頻繁且麻辣。政黨為求勝選，提名作業可謂葷素不忌、老少咸宜，甚至因人設事、打破既有規則也在所不惜。相關政治人物或是逆來順受、或是習以為常。也許他們心中存有一絲僥倖，認為自己終究會是最後取得勝利與權力的人，因此甘願無聲無息。這也使得年底的選舉平添不少變數與亂象的可能性。

然而，政治人物是否認真思考過：勝選的目的究竟為何，是為了權力嗎？台灣最有權力且最有魅力的兩位政治明星，如今一個在台中培德監獄病院服刑，罹患各種身心疾病，據傳尿失禁1天要換30件褲子；另一個，民調支持度創下9.2％史上最低紀錄，被人們訕笑「台灣新九二共識」，至今施政仍然寸步不行，難有作為。這兩位「前政壇人氣巨星」，是眾多選民一起創造出來的，若說他們的境遇悲慘，那麼，薪資停滯16年沒有成長、貧富差距日益擴大的台灣人民，豈不更該同情憂心嗎？

當然，放在全球架構下觀察，薪資倒退、貧富差距擴大，是世界共同的問題，但台灣經濟基礎雄厚，應該可以表現更好。在全球經濟區域化趨勢下，台灣由於因應無方，已日趨邊緣化，未來將危機重重。這段惡化過程跨越了3位總統的任期，「人氣」與「能力」無關。政黨與政治人物在謀畫如何「勝選」的同時，更應該思考：勝選之後能給台灣帶來什麼遠景、能為人民增添什麼福祉，而不是討好民眾累聚「人氣」。

今年年底的選舉是台灣有史以來規模最大的地方選舉，要選出直轄市長、直轄市議員、縣市長、縣市議員、鄉鎮市長、鄉鎮市民代表、村里長等7項地方公職人員，選民將要選出包括6個直轄市長、16個縣市長等11076名公職人員，簡稱「七合一」。但七合一選舉的性質乃是地方選舉，參選者所發表政見的理念和政策，實在不必拉高到「國家認同」或是「主體性之追求」的層次，做永無止境、虛無縹緲的口舌之爭，而應該回歸到與民眾生活息息相關、實事求是的實踐與操作層面；選民要重視的是候選人的品格與操守，尤其是必須多關注各候選人的「執政團隊」有些什麼樣參與者。經歷過去大大小小的多次選舉，應該已足夠讓台灣選民了解，無論是治理一個國家或是一個城市，乃至於管理地方層級的公共事務，選出人氣高的「救世主」、「超級巨星」，都是不切實際的。

從1996年台灣總統直選至今已近20年；甚至追溯到更早，1946年，台灣省行政長官公署即已舉行各鄉鎮市市民代表普選，之後當選的市民代表選出各縣縣參議員，而縣參議員則選出台灣參議員，可以說是戰後台灣史上首次進行的省民意機關選舉；而1986年組黨後的民進黨第一次參加立委與國代選舉，至今也將近30年了。

然而，這麼多年下來，政治人物和選民對選舉制度的本質和價值有多少認識呢？

選民必須了解，在民主政治環境裡，人民反制掌權者最重要的力量就是選票，然而台灣選民對選票的責任感卻很薄弱，選民對選前的激情、爭執興趣盎然，選完了看看誰贏，有的人開心、有的人難過，然後彷彿一切就結束了。選民這種心態，導致政治人物習慣選前亂開支票，擺出滿漢全席誆你說：「All you can eat！」選後選民才痛苦的發現原來其實是「All can eat you！」然後又吵又鬧，甚至不守法也振振有辭。

其實這一切都是可以在選前盡可能避免的。如果選民有足夠的理智與責任感，珍視手上這張選票，不被藍綠的選舉策略操弄，能夠平心靜氣、認真選出適任的人選，為民眾服務、讓國家進步，又何須事後一次又一次的進行社會運動，既破壞體制又撕裂社會情感呢。

在台灣選舉史上，我們選出的超級巨星，幾乎都成為悲劇英雄；選過以摩西自詡的唐吉訶德式夢幻人物、選過「你家就是我家」的貪婪者，也選出「台灣新九二共識總統」，如今我們是不是該腳踏實地些？從「選賢與能」這個老生常談的理念出發，選出真正能夠做好治理工作的政治人物─希望年底七合一地方選舉，會是好的開始。