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It has been a year since Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je took office. On the night of December 20, Ko uploaded a video clip reflecting problems that have not been handled well during the past year.

Apple Daily reports, in the video Ko first mentions he angrily fired the director of the Neihu Precinct, Taipei City Police Department because of the driftwood incident. He admits that he was influenced by the previous report so he wasn’t able to contain his anger in the next driftwood case. He reflects that he should listen to other’s opinion first rather than venting his anger on his subordinates.

Ko once furiously pounded the table when questioned by Taipei City Councilor Xu Hong-ting regarding whether or not he has a special relationship with the former board member of the EasyCard Company, Dai Ji-quan. Ko says that he is not good at controlling his temper. He thinks he and the councilors should be working partners and not hold opposing positions.

Newtalk reports, Ko says the most stricken incident in 2015 is using Japanese porn star, Hatano Yui, as the face of the new EasyCard. He is afraid of discussing female issues so in the beginning he tried to avoid handling the problem, but the situation only got worse in the end. He learned that, “If you don’t solve the problem, the problem will take you down.”

UDN reports, on December 21, Ko said in an interview that before they shot the video, his spokesperson Lin He asked him to think if there was something he wanted to reflect on. He considers himself to have endless things that need improvement and it could not be listed on one piece of A4 paper. But what matters is to actively promote the culture of reflecting in the Taipei City Government.

CNA reports, Ko says, each of his policies makes his supporting rate drop, such as charging off-street parking fee, canceling the rule of using YouBike for free during the first 30 minutes and canceling gift money for the elderly on a traditional holiday that celebrates the spirit of respecting the elderly. Ko says he will not lose the courage to do what he should do even if it will make his supporting rate decline.

He says that in the past, Taiwan’s politics have progressed slowly. This is because the politicians care too much about their polls.

Ko estimates that canceling the elderly gift money will cost him the supporting rate of at least 5%. But a year later, people will gradually learn that this policy will help establish community centers, dementia care centers and other facilities for elderly people.

Translated by June
Edited by Olivia Yang

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