Who Is Engaging in Sophistry: How Did NT$20 Billion Quake Prevention Funds Disappear into Thin Air?

 Who Is Engaging in Sophistry: How Did NT$20 Billion Quake Prevention Funds Disappear into Thin Air?

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

June 25, 2019

 Translation of an Excerpt

Under the DPP administration, the greatest thing that bothers people is not only that opinions from various circles are entangling, but also the fact of the matter is difficult to find. Recently the NT$20 billion earthquake prevention funds that have become the talk of the town are a case in point. On the site of Han Kuo-yu’s pep rally in Taichung, he cited that Chang San-cheng, during his brief premiership (Feb.1-June 20, 2016), disbursed NT$20 billion to help the relief of Tainan’s earthquake as an example, appealing that Premier Su “disaster relief should make no distinction of Blue and Green.” Unexpectedly, the Cabinet immediately rebutted this as a "faux pas", saying that Chang San-cheng only approved $3.2 billion for Tainan, even needling Han Kuo-yu’s staff"to do a better job." If the truth you had perceived were up to this point only, then you would have become a supporter of lies.

The truth of the matter, after being personally restated by Chang San-cheng himself, presented a more complete appearance. Besides disbursing NT$3.2 billion for Tainan, Chang San-cheng said that the "Ad Hoc Project for Restoring Homes and Fields" promulgated during his term of office, earmarked NT$20 billion as ad hoc project funds for the use of health inspection of old buildings and improvement of soil liquefaction in all counties and cities. He not only officially wrote "agreed" on the document, but also added a note saying that "in its implementation in the future, a rolling revision should be carried out." The purpose was to allow the Tsai government, which was about to take over, to use it with flexibility, not knowing the Tsai government, oblivious to this, would fail to carry on.

What is worthy of exploration is where this "Ad Hoc Project for Restoring Homes and Fields" worth NT$20 billion eventually ended up. In the general elections on January 16, 2016, Tsai Ing-wen won big; Mao Zhi-kuo, then premier, Chang San-cheng’s predecessor, resigned to assume responsibility. On February 1, Chang San-cheng succeeded Mao as premier; unfortunately, an earthquake struck Meinong, Kaohsiung on February 6, leading to the collapse of the Weiguan Jinlong Complex in Tainan, causing a disaster with casualties. The "Ad Hoc Project for Restoring Homes and Fields" was introduced amidst unsettling minds against this background. However, subsequently, the new Tsai government, which came to office on May 20^th, on the grounds of "inconclusive effect" changed the "Ad Hoc Project for Restoring Homes and Fields" into the "Statute Governing Reviewing Perilous and Old Buildings" and allocated only a budget of NT$400 million for this purpose the following year. Thus, the NT$20 billion earthquake prevention project disappeared into thin air.

The DPP is endowed with dexterous eloquence and ability of narrative, but lacks patience and interest in administrative work that required sustained management. The Green camp's treatment of the "Ad Hoc Project for Restoring Homes and Fields" was no exception: one, as the earlier project introduced could not be registered as its own governance performance, it quickly disappeared. Two, the so-called health inspection of perilous and old buildings and improvement of soil both would require arduous management, but were difficult to demonstrate results; thus, they need not be a priority of DPP governance.

Before the occurrence of the next earthquake disaster, the public will not pay attention to which government cares more about their safety, homes, and property. Nevertheless, the "Ad Hoc Project for Restoring Homes and Fields", which was locked out by the DPP, could have been a practicable and useful program.

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