The distinction between politics and entertainment in Taiwan is becoming increasingly blurred, with President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) being the most typical example.
As everyone knows, Ma has always relied on his good looks to win more women’s votes than his rivals. He often attends public events wearing super-short shorts and makes sure that the media get a good view. He also made up a titillating story about having been handed a towel by a farmer’s daughter while showering during a “long stay” in southern Taiwan and so on.
Although Ma has won a string of elections by showing himself off and using pretentious words and actions, over the years his true colors have come to light. His bumbling policies have been dragging the nation and its society down for a long time, and many people who once supported him now regret it.
Likewise, a lot of candidates standing in Saturday’s nine-in-one elections think that they can gain an advantage by playing on people’s interest in sex and focus on appearances.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei mayoral candidate Sean Lien (連勝文) has been saying a lot of things that he does not believe himself, while getting his pretty wife to campaign for him by wandering among plain folk like an angel descended from on high.
Lien’s KMT comrade, New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫), who is seeking re-election, has been busy attending bogus groundbreaking ceremonies. He is clearly trying to copy Apple chief executive Tim Cook, while claiming pretentiously that he does not aim to be like anyone in particular. Yet his ability and achievements fall far short of Cook’s.
KMT Legislator Lin Tsang-min (林滄敏), who is running for Changhua County commissioner, has made a campaign ad mimicking the poses that Taiwanese-Japanese heartthrob Takeshi Kaneshiro (金城武) struck in a rural setting for an airline commercial. Decked out in the same kind of dazzling white shirt, Lin looks as fresh and clean as a bean sprout.
In Chiayi, the KMT has parachuted in a loveable princess, Chen Yi-chen (陳以真), to stand as its mayoral candidate. The party hopes that the former TV newsreader’s cute looks and nimble tongue will help conceal her questionable administrative ability, downplay her party affiliation and obscure her corporate connections.
These are all examples of how sex appeal, pretentious language and bogus activities are being used to package candidates and give them an electoral advantage.
Elections are supposed to be about picking the most virtuous and capable candidates, not the prettiest or most handsome ones. This is not a song and dance contest, after all. Food and sex may be people’s primary needs, but humans also have intellect and dignity of spirit. Nonetheless, in a society that is becoming increasingly materialistic, voters’ perceptions of candidates’ appearances are often the main factor determining who they vote for, and people’s ability to think about things rationally seems to be on the wane.
Many politicians who are good at cultivating their images turn out to be unwilling or incapable of doing a proper job once they are elected.
One of independent Taipei mayoral candidate Ko Wen-je’s (柯文哲) characteristics is that he likes to tell the truth, which has made him a hero in the public’s eyes, yet many people are still caught up in the atmosphere of entertainment-style politics and they often let politicians fool them without realizing it.
All the sex and lies need to be cleared out of Taiwanese politics. Then people will be less likely to make wrong choices that they live to regret.
Chang Shyue-yih is a professor at National Yang-Ming University’s School of Medicine.
Translated by Julian Clegg
Although former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo — known for being the most pro-Taiwan official to hold the post — is not in the second administration of US president-elect Donald Trump, he has maintained close ties with the former president and involved himself in think tank activities, giving him firsthand knowledge of the US’ national strategy. On Monday, Pompeo visited Taiwan for the fourth time, attending a Formosa Republican Association’s forum titled “Towards Permanent World Peace: The Shared Mission of the US and Taiwan.” At the event, he reaffirmed his belief in Taiwan’s democracy, liberty, human rights and independence, highlighting a
The US Department of Defense recently released this year’s “Report on Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China.” This annual report provides a comprehensive overview of China’s military capabilities, strategic objectives and evolving global ambitions. Taiwan features prominently in this year’s report, as capturing the nation remains central to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) vision of the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” a goal he has set for 2049. The report underscores Taiwan’s critical role in China’s long-term strategy, highlighting its significance as a geopolitical flashpoint and a key target in China’s quest to assert dominance
The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) last week released the latest job vacancy data in Taiwan, which highlighted how many job openings firms had yet to be filled at the end of August last year. The data also revealed how the vacant positions were closely related to the business climate that industrial and services sectors faced at the time. The DGBAS collects data on job vacancies at the end of February, May, August and November every year. The number of job vacancies includes recruits for expanding operations and additional production lines as well as for openings related to
The Legislative Yuan passed legislation on Tuesday aimed at supporting the middle-aged generation — defined as people aged 55 or older willing and able to work — in a law initially proposed by Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Wu Chun-cheng (吳春城) to help the nation transition from an aged society to a super-aged society. The law’s passage was celebrated by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the TPP. The brief show of unity was welcome news, especially after 10 months of political fighting and unconstitutional amendments that are damaging democracy and the constitutional order, eliciting concern
RSS