Typhoon Morakot has not only caused enormous loss of life and property in southern Taiwan, it has also highlighted the structural and organizational problems in President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) academic-led administration. If Ma ignores public opinion and does not carry out a major reshuffle of the Cabinet, a catastrophic political landslide could ensue.
This crisis is closely related to Ma’s leadership style. He is notorious for abiding by the law but being inflexible. He sticks to established practice, regards himself as infallible and is filled with the arrogance of the powerful and obstinately persistent.
Since the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) returned to power, the administration has gradually been influenced by Ma’s leadership style. Those below follow the example of their superiors. They only know that they should report problems to their superiors and will not take the initiative to address the problems without Ma’s consent. Even if they know they should solve problems on their own, they will not do so lest they steal Ma’s thunder.
This leadership style was clearly evident in the government’s rescue and relief efforts in the aftermath of Morakot. The government could have quickly boosted public morale, showed empathy for victims and demonstrated its efficiency by proclaiming a state of emergency. Instead, it stuck to the Disaster Prevention and Protection Act (災害防救法), proof that Ma lacks the nerve to stand on the front line. No wonder 75 percent of respondents to an online CNN poll said Ma should resign to take responsibility for the delays in helping victims.
Facing foreign journalists, Ma showed his arrogance and prejudice by attributing the disaster to the weather, typography and “ignorant” villagers. Ma confronted the victims as an aloof head of state, a move that not only violated the taboo of crisis communications, but also caused much jaw-dropping in the international media.
Were it not for the media offering crisis communication and providing immediate updates on the disaster, the Cabinet’s establishment of the Central Emergency Operations Center would have just been a stopgap measure. This is why Premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) had no choice but to say that communication between the central and local governments must go through the media. Strangely, however, Liu capitalized on the functions of the media while accusing them of being unprofessional. He also repeatedly boasted of the “swiftness” of the government’s rescue effort.
Crisis management and communications are crucial to modern government. Any responsible government should have a mechanism to respond to unexpected internal and external crises. Compared with former president Lee Teng-hui’s (李登輝) crisis management during the 921 Earthquake and former premier Tang Fei’s (唐飛) approval of the resignation of his deputy, Yu Shyi-kun (游錫堃), three days after the Bajhang Creek (八掌溪) Incident, the Ma administration’s response to Morakot has been inept.
Since the typhoon hit, there has been a lack of communication between the Presidential Office, the National Security Council and the Cabinet. Media outlets had to send their reporters directly to the disaster areas to find out what was going on. As a result, the government’s overall image has been tarnished.
Given the open lack of coordination between government departments and the public bickering between officials trying to shirk their responsibilities, how could anyone expect the media to put in a good word for the government?
Good crisis communication provides the government with information to support crisis management, inform the public and restore faith in the government. The public has lost confidence in Ma and his administration. If Ma thinks the criticism and calls for a Cabinet reshuffle will eventually fade away, the public can only pray for good luck and fend for themselves.
Shu Chin-chiang is a former advisory committee member of the National Security Council.
TRANSLATED BY TED YANG
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