The DPP Promised the Sky then Became Drunk with Power

The DPP Promised the Sky then Became Drunk with Power
China Times Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC) 
A Translation 
November 18, 2016

Executive Summary: During her presidential campaign, Tsai Ing-wen boasted that her government would be "the most communicative government in history". She even suggested that young people who seek redress the government but are ignored twice, slam their fists down on the table the third time. Her words still echo in our ears. Yet when the public vociferously protested the importation of food products from Japan's nuclear disaster area, the implementation of longer work weeks, and pension cuts for military personnel, civil servants, and public school teachers, what we saw was the least communicative and least willing to be communicative government in history.

Full Text Below:

During her presidential campaign, Tsai Ing-wen boasted that her government would be "the most communicative government in history". She even suggested that young people who seek redress the government but are ignored twice, slam their fists down on the table the third time. Her words still echo in our ears. Yet when the public vociferously protested the importation of food products from Japan's nuclear disaster area, the implementation of longer work weeks, and pension cuts for military personnel, civil servants, and public school teachers, what we saw was the least communicative and least willing to be communicative government in history.

During the pension reform process, the Presidential Office chose to listen only to people with political agendas who distorted the facts and demonized military personnel, civil servants, and public school teachers. The result was over 100 thousand people took to the streets in protest. When the Legislative Yuan reviewed longer work weeks, DPP legislator Chen Ying pretended not to hear legislators who loudly called out "Dissenting opinion!" He rammed the bill through in under one minute, pretending that no objections had been raised. Labor and youth voiced their objections hundreds of times. Yet the government pretended not to hear them. The situation was long past slamming one's fist down on the table. Protesters crashed their way into the Legislative Yuan and DPP headquarters, but the Tsai government still refused to listen. The Council of Agriculture presented false information on food products from Japan's nuclear disaster area. It even fabricated lies, alleging that only Mainland China and Taiwan prohibited their importation. It deliberately concealed the fact that the United States and many other nations prohibited their importation. Even during public hearings, it hastily attempted to ram the measure through. This eventually led to violent struggles and bloody conflicts.

As the three cases show, Tsai Ing-wen government political communications are riddled with distortions, defamation, brutality, deceit, and opacity. The Tsai government has neither the desire to engage in genuine communications, nor the ability. It is riddled with all manner of problems that should never have arisen in the first place. It is a clear example of what a government must not do.

Political communication is one the basic skills political leaders in a democratic society must learn. The most essential element of communication is knowing oneself, making the most of one's own advantages, minimizing one's shortcomings, and perceiving threats and opportunities in order to gain public support. During the communication process, one must not be too egocentric and egotistical. One must understand the needs of the citizens and not overestimate one's own ability. One must adopt an open and transparent attitude when interacting with the community, and seek common ground. Only then can one establish predictable and enforceable public policy.

The Tsai Ying-wen government understands these basic principles of communication. But despite its understanding, it repeatedly makes mistakes during actual communications. As a result the president's job approval rating has plummeted, so much so that she has complained that “I am in great pain". Actually the reason behind all this is quite simple. First, the when the DPP was in the political opposition, and Tsai Ing-wen was still waging her presidential campaign, they made too many impossible promises. Upon assuming power they found these promises impossible to fufill. They were forced to make repeated 180 degree policy reversals. The imposition of longer work weeks was a typical example. Second, in cross-Strait relations, their ideological obstinacy prevented them from recognizing the 1992 Consensus and arriving at a compromise. Cross-Strait tensions rose. The Tsai government compensated by seeking closer relations with Japan. This forced it to make endless concessions to the Japanese, even at the expense of the feelings of ordinary ROC citizens. This is why it was determined to allow the importation of food products from Japan's nuclear disaster area. Third, the Tsai Ying-wen government lacks the temperament necessary to govern. Its governance could not be any further from “humility”. Instead it is arrogant in every imaginable way. It views military personnel, civil servants, and public school teachers as political enemies to be liquidated. It views pension reform as a political struggle, and an opportunity to demonize its foes.

The KMT was in the same plight when it was in office. It was blasted mercilessly by the DPP. Now that it is in the opposition, it will naturally argue that “What's good for the goose, is good for the gander”. The KMT is considerably less adept at anti-government political struggle than the DPP. Nevetheless Taiwan has long been trapped in a situation where the ruling party cannot govern the nation. It cannot communicate with the opposition party, which invariably demands “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth”. If partisan political struggles and economic stagnation cannot be resolved, the nation can only decline.

Tsai Ing-wen prided her government on being the most communicative government in history. She cannot sit idly by as her own government becomes the least communicative government in history. After all, the victims of government incompetence are hardly confined to President Tsai Ying-wen, who complains that “I am in great pain”. They include the vast majority of the public on Taiwan whose lives are filled with suffering.

Does Tsai Ing-wen really seek to redeem this uncommunicative government and make it government truly responsive to the people of Taiwan? If so, he must communicate correctly. She must acknowledge that the DPP was wrong to engage in political obstructionism when it was in the political opposition, and that it was wrong to make false promises. Second, in cross-Strait and foreign affairs, she must set aside political and ideological antagonism, and return to policies necessary for Taiwan's prosperity. Third, she must abandon electioneering oriented political struggles. She must take the high road, and seek to communicate with the KMT and other sectors of the nation. Only rational policy communications can get the nation's policies back on track. Only this will enable the Tsai Ying-wen government to get past the current political dilemma, strengthen the nation, and enable the nation to begin a new wave of development.

錯在選前過度承諾 選後態度傲慢
2016/11/18 中國時報

蔡英文選前曾標榜她的政府一定是「史上最會溝通的政府」，還建議年輕人跟政府溝通時，若第二次講了還聽不見，第三次就可以拍桌子。言猶在耳，國人在開放日本核災食品進口、一例一休砍勞工7天假、軍公教年金改革這三大案，卻看到史上最不會、更不願溝通的政府。

在年金改革過程中，總統府聽任有心人士扭曲事實與惡意汙名化軍公教，激起10多萬人走上街頭抗議；立法院審查一例一休，民進黨籍立委陳瑩不顧在場還有立委高喊「不同意見」，只用1分鐘就強行宣布無異議通過，勞運年輕人反對了幾百次，政府還是聽不見，早就不只是拍桌，而是直接闖入立法院與民進黨中央黨部，卻依然看不到有意義的溝通。開放日本核災食品進口，農委會不只提供錯誤資訊，捏造只有中國大陸與台灣禁止進口的說法，刻意隱瞞美國等許多國家都不開放的事實，連舉辦公聽會也想以偷渡方式草率完成，終於爆發了強烈抗爭與多起流血衝突事件。

從這三大案來看，蔡英文政府的政治溝通，夾雜了太多的扭曲、汙名、粗暴、欺瞞與黑箱，不只沒有任何溝通的誠意與技巧可言，還充滿了各種不應該出現的負面元素，簡直是錯誤示範的集大成。

政治溝通是民主社會政治領導人必須懂的基本功，溝通的最基本要素是確實認識自己，能準確掌握己方優勢、避開不足，以前瞻眼光看到威脅與機會，才能在溝通中獲取公民的最大支持。在實際溝通過程中，不能過度本位主義、以我為主，要瞭解公民的需求與想法，不高估自己的能耐，本於公開透明的坦誠態度跟各界互動，找出理想交集，才能訂出可預測、可執行的公共政策。

這些政策溝通的基本原理，蔡英文政府不會不懂。儘管懂得原理，卻在實際的政治溝通中一再犯錯，使得總統的民調滿意度跌落谷底，讓她浩歎「很痛苦」。其原因很簡單，一來是民進黨在野時期及蔡英文競選階段，給了民眾太多不可行的承諾，掌權執政後發現難以推行，只好反覆上演政策「髮夾彎」，強推一例一休、大砍勞工7天假就是典型的例子；二來在兩岸關係上，因為對意識形態的堅持而失去「九二共識」爭議的妥協空間，兩岸緊張情勢升高，只好設法從對日關係上尋求彌補，對日本需索一再讓步，甚至不惜違反公民的普遍情感，這正是開放日本核災食品進口的政治背景；三來是蔡英文政府仍然欠缺治國的格局與高度，完全執政之後不見謙卑反而處處傲慢，把軍公教當成清算對象，才把好好的年金改革操作成汙名化的政治鬥爭。

在這個過程之中，執政時曾經因為類似處境而飽受民進黨批判的國民黨，如今已經在野，當然免不了「以其人之道，還治其人之身」。儘管國民黨在政治鬥爭方面的決心與功力，都遠遠不如在野之時的民進黨，但是台灣長期陷在執政黨治國無道、溝通無方，在野黨以牙還牙、上綱上線批判的情境中，政治惡鬥與經濟停滯問題永遠無解，國家注定走向衰敗。

曾經自豪要籌組最會溝通政府的蔡英文，當然不應該坐視自己的政府淪為史上最不會溝通的政府。畢竟政府無能的犧牲品，絕不是「我很痛苦」的蔡英文總統，而是真實生活飽受煎熬的廣大台灣人民。

蔡英文如果真的有心拯救這個非常不會溝通的政府，讓自己的政府成為真正對台灣有貢獻的政府，就必須採取正確的政治溝通策略，唯坦承以對，一是對在野時期的錯誤杯葛與錯誤承諾表示由衷的歉意；二在兩岸與外交方面，應放下政治與意識形態對抗心態，回歸真正對於台灣發展有利的政策基本面；三則要擺脫政治鬥爭的選舉對抗思維，轉而從治國的高度，積極與國民黨等各界進行理性的政策溝通，才能讓國家的各項重大政策重新回歸正軌。如此，蔡英文政府才有可能擺脫當前這種紛亂的政治困局，從而壯大台灣的實力，推動國家再度邁向新一波的發展。