Recently, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) proposed a seven-point policy for sports development in Taiwan. I was looking forward to hearing some constructive ideas.
However, I find his proposal to be rather amateurish and hollow.
Judging from Gou’s press release and speech in Pingtung, the so-called “sports gift money” (體育禮金) is the only slightly creative idea. Still, we must understand that every policy has its purpose. In the past, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government issued “sports stimulus vouchers” (動滋券) to rebuild Taiwan’s sports industry after the COVID-19 pandemic. The policy was totally different from Gou’s claim of offering money to school-age children nationwide for sports events.
The former is short-term post-COVID-19 pandemic economic stimulus, while the latter is a long-term investment. Although the sports gift money is not completely ineffective, it would be a waste without a concrete implementation plan in place.
In sports, adults are the most dominant consumer group, no matter if they are amateur athletes or sports spectators. What adults pursue in sports is watching the most intense and exciting games.
Since there is still room for development in the various sports sectors domestically, is the attempt to rashly expand the child market with the use of gift money not putting the cart before the horse?
The rest of Gou’s seven-point policy is a repeat of the DPP’s current sports policies. In recent years, the government renovated the National Sports Training Center in Kaohsiung in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics and launched a “golden plan” — a program including scientific support and personalized training for athletes. All these efforts were key to Taiwan’s best performance ever in the Tokyo Olympics.
The Ministry of Education’s Sports Administration has continued to work with local governments to establish affordable and accessible public sports centers nationwide, and the government also amended the Sports Industry Development Act (運動產業發展條例) in 2021 to effectively encourage businesses to invest in sports.
In addition to the continued growth of the Chinese Professional Baseball League, the soccer, volleyball and multiple basketball leagues are forming an influential sports industry, a result of cooperation among the central and local governments along with businesses, so the DPP cannot claim all the credit.
However, it would not be right for Gou to ignore all of the DPP’s efforts, which he would know about had he done the smallest amount of research.
This is not the first time Gou has made an empty promise thinking he only needs to throw money at a problem. He once pledged to spend NT$10 billion (US$313 million) to produce 100 films, but only made one movie instead.
It is difficult to discern any presidential qualities in this man. It would be a misfortune for the nation’s sports development if he gains power.
Chen Bang-an is deputy executive director of the Democratic Progressive Party’s Taichung branch.
Translated by Eddy Chang.
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