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.

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KMT SPOOKED BY POOR SHOWING IN LOCAL ELECTIONS
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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.

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UNSHEATHING "THE POCKETKNIFE"
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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.

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KING'S PLATE INCLUDES ELECTION CAMPAIGNS, PARTY REFORMS
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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.

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COMMENT: IS KING THE RIGHT GUY?
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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