PRESIDENT MA UNSHEATHS THE "POCKETKNIFE" IN BID TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TAIPEI 001499 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/17/2019 TAGS: PGOV KDEM TW SUBJECT: PRESIDENT MA UNSHEATHS THE "POCKETKNIFE" IN BID TO REJUVENATE THE KMT REF: TAIPEI 1437 Classified By: Political Section Chief Dave Rank. Reasons: 1.4 b/d ¶1. (C) Summary: King Pu-tsung, a longtime trusted ally of President Ma Ying-jeou, returned to Taiwan from the Brookings Institution on December 16 to assume the post of Secretary General of the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party. The hurried recall of King indicated Ma's deep concern after the KMT's poor showing in local elections less than two weeks earlier. King's immediate task is to boost KMT prospects in upcoming legislative by-elections and mayoral elections in Taiwan's largest cities, which are seen as important for building momentum toward the 2012 presidential election. King also will be responsible for carrying out Ma's ambitious plans to reform the party's sclerotic and corrupt bureaucracy. End summary. -------------- - KMT SPOOKED BY POOR SHOWING IN LOCAL ELECTIONS -------------- - ¶2. (C) In the past two weeks it has become clear that the results of December 5 local elections greatly spooked the KMT. Although the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) only gained one seat, capturing four of 17 elections for county magistrates and city mayors, it came within three percentage points of the ruling party in terms of total votes cast (reftel). Particularly disturbing to KMT officials was the relatively narrow margin of victory by their candidates in KMT strongholds such as Taoyuan County, which they attributed in part to dissatisfaction with the Ma administration among traditional supporters and independent voters. Ma, who also is KMT Chairman, apologized multiple times at a meeting of the party's policy-making Central Standing Committee just four days after the vote. Huang Chao-shun, a Standing Committee member and lawmaker, told PolOff that 27 people spoke at the meeting to express their concerns. -------------- UNSHEATHING "THE POCKETKNIFE" -------------- ¶3. (C) On the same day, Ma announced the return of King Pu-tsung, a long-time trusted ally and confidant, to take over as KMT Secretary General and rejuvenate the party. King served as a deputy to Ma when he was Taipei City Mayor and also helped orchestrate Ma's landslide victory in last year's presidential elections. Instead of joining the new administration, however, King took a post at a Hong Kong university and later moved to the Brookings Institution in Washington, from where he hurriedly returned December 16 at Ma's request to take over the day-to-day running of the KMT. ¶4. (C) Party officials told PolOff that King earned the nickname "the pocketknife" because of his reputation of acting quickly and without regard to how many people he crosses to get the job done. He replaced Chan Chun-po, the 68-year-old party veteran who in many ways embodied the entrenched KMT bureaucracy that Ma wants to shake up. In contrast, the new secretary-general, at 53, provides a picture of vitality. On the day his return was announced, local newspapers ran a photo of a very buff King, dressed in nothing but a pair of skimpy swim shorts, stretching before participating in an iron-man contest. With a mustache and full head of hair that often falls over his forehead, his appearance is not unlike that of the dapper gangsters frequently seen in Hong Kong films. -------------- -------------- KING'S PLATE INCLUDES ELECTION CAMPAIGNS, PARTY REFORMS -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) King's first task will be to help the party steady its slipping electoral footing. The first challenge will come on January 9 with three by-elections for legislative seats previously held by the KMT, including two in which the incumbent was disqualified because of vote-buying charges. Media reports suggest these seats may not be easy to retain, and King said he would immediately consult with local KMT leaders and visit by-election constituencies. Four more legislative by-elections will be held in February, and soon thereafter the KMT will choose its candidates for five crucial municipal elections to be held next December. The opposition DPP is the odds-on favorite to win the southern cities of Tainan and Kaohsiung, and could mount strong challenges in Taipei City and Taipei County -- soon to be called New Taipei City -- where the KMT incumbents are not TAIPEI 00001499 002 OF 002 particularly popular. Huang told PolOff that King will be called upon to resolve thorny nomination issues. For example, she said, popular Vice Premier Eric Chu wants to run for mayor of New Taipei but does not want to have to face the incumbent in a primary. ¶6. (C) Ma also wants King to deal with the party's deeply engrained corruption and long-entrenched bureaucracy. Lin Yi-hua, a Standing Committee member and Taipei City Councilwoman, told PolOff she expected King to implement a personnel shakeup within the party. Another Standing Committee member, "Sweet" Lai Su-ru, said King would play the role of Chief Executive Officer in implementing Ma's broad party reform program. The agenda includes cracking down on vote buying, enforcing strict party discipline, and resolving the issue of the party's substantial assets that long have been viewed as the root of much corruption. -------------- COMMENT: IS KING THE RIGHT GUY? -------------- ¶6. (C) The choice of King as KMT Secretary General is not without controversy within the party. Some members point out that King's knowledge of grass-roots politics is limited. Perhaps more importantly, other senior officials argue that he has poor interpersonal skills and is not close to many within the party. The key question is whether those characteristics will hinder or help King in his foremost task of shaking up a party long resistant to change. STANTON