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First it was US beef, then
an ECFA
Friday, Jan 08, 2010, Page 8
President Ma Ying-jeou (°¨^¤E) endured possibly the biggest setback of his
political career on Tuesday when, after months of to-ing and fro-ing, the
legislature finally came around to re-imposing restrictions on certain US beef
products.
Not only was the move a slap in the face for the executive ¡X which had
negotiated the deal with the US ¡X it was also a severe blow for Ma as Chinese
Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman. KMT legislators put on a show of defiance in
passing the amendment, while also laying down the law for the executive on
future handling of beef imports.
The reversal not only humiliated Ma, but also made him look weaker than ever.
One would have been hard pressed, however, to notice this latest blow to his
credibility, as Ma on Tuesday refused to accept any of the blame for the beef
debacle, attributing the problem solely to bad government communication with the
public.
While lack of communication is partly responsible for the current shambles, the
biggest objection for most people was the manner in which the protocol was
negotiated.
In striking the deal in secret, the government ignored the possibility of
negative public reaction, seeming only to be concerned about what it could get
in return from the US for lifting the ban. Washington had been stalling on
several issues to get the ban lifted, but to fail to take into consideration the
reaction of the public and the legislature was a fatal miscalculation.
Ma cannot blame legislators for this, as they were only bowing to pressure from
the public, who remain ill-informed about the safety of US beef.
It was the government¡¦s task to ensure people were informed before they
announced the protocol, not negotiate the deal behind closed doors and try to
explain away any fears after more US beef was allowed to enter the market.
The failure to translate the protocol into Chinese was another big mistake as
this left many feeling that the government had something to hide.
Ma¡¦s reluctance to take the heat for his administration¡¦s latest disaster is
understandable as his popularity is already at rock bottom, but the government¡¦s
passiveness throughout the whole episode has been breathtaking.
The protocol was signed in October and came into effect in early November, by
which time there was already substantial opposition. But there were few serious
attempts to douse the flames during the ensuing months, with the executive
apparently believing the fuss would die down.
What is even more unbelievable is that the government now looks as if it is
going to make the same mistakes with its planned economic cooperation framework
agreement (ECFA) with China. Despite all its efforts, most people still have no
clue what the pact will contain.
The most surprising thing is that all this is happening under the watch of a man
who previously placed so much importance on communication.
It is no wonder, with his popularity at its lowest ebb and his authority
similarly plunging, that Ma recently brought his communications guru King
Pu-tsung (ª÷·ÁÁo) back into the fold.
The way things are going, Ma will need all King¡¦s media savviness if he is to
stand any chance of rescuing things in time for 2012.
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