The Party Chairman Must Naturally Assume Responsibility

The Party Chairman Must Naturally Assume Responsibility
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China)
A Translation
November 18, 2013

Summary: Today, populism and instant gratification reign supreme. Those in power are ever more fearful of ridicule and ever more inclined to bend with the political winds. Politicians have developed the habit of kowtowing to populist sentiment. Populist rhetoric increasingly determines public policy. We would like to remind President Ma that "A politician thinks of the next election, a statesman thinks of the next generation." "Doing the right thing" is duty. It is the only way to ensure that the nation moves in the right direction. Now that President Ma no longer needs to think of the next election, he should think of the next generation.

Full text below:

During the 19th KMT Party Congress, President Ma spearheaded an amendment to the party constitution. It stated that once a Kuomintang party member becomes President of the ROC, he "naturally becomes the party chairman." This move was interpreted a number of different ways. But realistically it means that when a new president takes office in 2016, assuming the KMT remains in power, President Ma must abide by the party constitution and surrender the party chairmanship. If the KMT loses power, there will surely be an uproar within the party. President Ma will surely find it difficult to retain his post as party chairman. In 2016, President Ma must step down empty-handed. That is a foregone conclusion.

When British Prime Minister Winston Churchill stepped down, he famously quipped, "When I leave, the pub closes." But here on Taiwan, few power holders are like that. Few are that care free. Few can simply turn and walk away. Some cling to party power. Others create new power bases to preserve their political influence. Some are even less able to let go. They surround themselves with true believers and become spoilers. If upon leaving office President Ma can be a good "ex president," he will make a positive contribution to constitutional rule in the Republic of China.

Two and half years remain until his retirement. But one must deduct the half year "caretaker period" between the election of the new president and his or her inauguration. This leaves President Ma only two years to get things done. Ma knows he will retire empty-handed. Therefore if President Ma wants to reverse the plunge in his public approval and leave a worthwhile legacy, he has no time to waste. He must seize the moment. He must assume responsibility. He must do everything he wanted to do but dared not do. He must promote everything he wanted to promote, but failed to promote. He must fulfill every promise he wanted to fulfill, but failed to fulfill. He must make every effort to do these within the next two years.

The first is tax reform. Over the past two decades, politicians and political parties, in order to win votes, have doubled down on social welfare. They have increased coverage for the underprivileged. But systemic bloat and loopholes have led to waste, fraud, and abuse. Meanwhile, tax relief measures have proliferated. The ROC now has the lowest income tax rate of any country in the world. This is true at all levels of government. It has resulted in debt at all levels of government debt totaling 22 trillion NTD. The amounts to one million NTD for every citizen.

Within democracies, tax hikes will always be politically taboo. But fiscal discipline and justice urgently demand them. In recent years, tax hikes have occasionally been proposedup. But the measures have been piecemeal and stopgap. No one dares touch the core issue. President Ma no longer has any election concerns. He has an obligation to make drastic fiscal reforms.

The second is how to revive the economy. In recent years, the domestic economy has stagnated. This is due partly to the international situation. But domestic industrial restructuring is also a factor. When the economy took off, the information industry played a leading role in Taiwan's economy. Recently however, it has reached a bottleneck. It has been unable to jettison its role as an OEM provider. It has been unable to develop its mobile industry. It has been indecisive. The government speaks of "emerging flagship industries." But it attempts to please everyone by including everything. As a result its strategy lacks focus. It wants to include everything. It is afraid of leaving out anything. In fact of course, focusing on everything is the same as focusing on nothing. If Taiwan cannot exploit its unique advantages, the harsh environment of international competition will render any such efforts futile. President Ma must choose the target and move in that direction. Otherwise, any government rhetoric about flagship industries will remain empty talk.

Fiscal discipline and industrial transformation are relatively simple reforms. Take cross-Strait relations. President Ma has made significant breakthroughs. But he has also encountered many bottlenecks. For example, TISA and the establishment of cross-strait representative offices. These have encountered long delays due to internal and external factors. Either that, or the Ma administration gave up the moment it encountered resistance. The measures were postponed indefinitely. Therefore how optimistic can one be about the upcoming TIGA? Will these things that need doing be done? It all depends on President Ma Ying-jeou and whether he has the will.

Other things, such as whether to continue construction on the Number Four Nuclear Power Plant, whether to put it into operation, or whether to concentrate on more sustainable national planning projects, have suffered due to vested interests or ideological disputes. These projects may elict more boos than applause. But if these are not done during these two golden years, they will never be done.

Today, populism and instant gratification reign supreme. Those in power are ever more fearful of ridicule and ever more inclined to bend with the political winds. Politicians have developed the habit of kowtowing to populist sentiment. Populist rhetoric increasingly determines public policy. We would like to remind President Ma that "A politician thinks of the next election, a statesman thinks of the next generation." "Doing the right thing" is duty. It is the only way to ensure that the nation moves in the right direction. Now that President Ma no longer needs to think of the next election, he should think of the next generation.
   
當然黨主席，當然更多承當
【聯合報╱社論】
2013.11.18 02:06 am

國民黨十九全在馬總統主導下通過黨章修訂，今後國民黨員一旦就任總統即成為「當然黨主席」。儘管此舉引發輿論不同解讀，事實上，從政治現實分析，二○一六年新任總統上台，若國民黨繼續執政，則馬總統必須依黨章交出黨權；若國民黨丟了政權，黨內必定一片譁然，馬總統恐怕也很難再戀棧主席一職。二○一六年馬總統「裸退」，幾乎已成定局。

英國名相邱吉爾當年下台時說過一句名言：「酒店打烊我就走」；然而，在國內政壇，掌權者下台時鮮少有這種「揮一揮衣袖，不帶走一片雲彩」的灑脫。有人繼續掌握黨權，有人則另起爐灶，以確保自己的影響力不墜；有人則即便身繫囹圄，亦不甘寂寞，裹脅支持者在政壇呼風喚雨。因此，馬總統若能在卸任後稱職扮演「退休總統」角色，對中華民國的憲政發展未嘗不是一件好事。

儘管距離卸任還有兩年半，但扣除新總統選出到就任近半年的「看守政府」，馬總統真正能做事的時間，僅剩下兩年。既然是「預知裸退」，馬總統如果想在未來兩年逆轉其低民調的頹勢，留下一個可以讓人民記憶的政績，他已沒有太多時間可以浪費。他必須把握時間、承擔責任，把所有想做卻不敢做、應該做卻推不動的、承諾過卻沒做到的，傾盡全力在這兩年內完成。

首先是稅制改革。近二十年來，政治人物和政黨為了爭取選票，競相加碼各種社會福利措施；雖然增加了對弱勢族群的照護，卻也因制度的流於浮濫與漏洞百出，造成政府支出的浪費與嚴重負擔。但與此同時，各種稅負減免措施也越來越多，讓台灣變成全球人民稅負比重最低的國家。這種情況，在各級政府皆然，也讓各級政府負債總額超過廿二兆元，相當於每個國民負債近百萬元。

在民主國家，「加稅」永遠是政治人物的禁忌。但重整財政紀律與正義，確實已到刻不容緩的時候。近年來雖偶聞稅制的些微調整，但整體而言，多半是頭痛醫頭、腳痛醫腳，不敢觸及核心問題。在已無選舉考量的情況下，馬總統有義務大刀闊斧進行財政改革。

其次是經濟的重振。近幾年國內經濟停滯不前，部分原因雖是受國際情勢影響，但國內產業轉型不利亦是主要原因之一。經濟起飛後，電子資訊產業扮演了台灣經濟產業的龍頭角色，但近來在轉型上卻碰到瓶頸，無法擺脫代工的命運，卻又未能抓緊行動產業的發展關鍵，而舉棋不定。政府所謂「新興旗艦產業」，內容包山包海，卻缺乏焦點，什麼都想要，卻什麼都不敢捨。其實，重點太多，就是沒有重點。台灣若不能把握自身優勢，要在嚴苛的國際競爭環境裡脫穎而出，將如緣木求魚。馬總統必須選定目標並傾力朝此方向前進，否則政府設定再多的旗艦產業，也只是空談。

財政紀律和產業轉型都只是相對單純的改革，至於兩岸關係，雖在馬總統任上有了可觀的突破，卻也已然碰到了多處瓶頸。例如服貿協議和兩岸互設辦事處，因為各種內外因素延宕許久，或者遇阻力就自動放棄，而變得遙遙無期；那麼，接下來的貨品協議，又如何令人樂觀？如何讓這些「應該做的事」有效地推到其預定位置，取決於馬英九總統的一念之間。

其他，諸如核四是否要繼續興建、運轉，以及更符合永續發展的國土規劃等，也因牽涉意識型態或遭遇既得利益之爭，最後可能變成「噓聲大於掌聲」的工作。但假使不能把握這「沒有包袱」的黃金兩年，以後就更不可能做了。

在民粹當道且速食主義盛行的當下，執政者隨波逐流或憂讒畏譏的情況較諸過去嚴重，政治人物養成了向民粹低頭的習慣，民粹語言也屢屢因為可以左右政策而越發變本加厲。我們提醒馬總統：「政客想的是下一次選舉，政治家想的是下一代」，「做應該做的事情」不但是責任，也是把國家導向正確方向的唯一方法。馬總統既已無下次選舉，就多想想下一代吧！