Ko Wenzhe, the founding chairman of the Popular Party, attended Taipei City Council candidate Lin Zhenyu's presidential warm-house tea party today. When talking about the development of the party, he criticized the DPP for gradually deteriorating after gaining power. He bluntly said, "How could the DPP degenerate so quickly?" He believed that this was an issue worthy of historical review. He also criticized the KMT for being too old and "no matter how you look at it, it has three lines and is weird." In the face of external concerns about whether the People's Party has become a bubble, Ko Wenzhe expressed no concern, emphasizing that the greatest benefit of the People's Party is that it "can improve". If it makes mistakes, it will continue to correct itself, and it will get better and better in the future.
Ke Wenzhe said that he was quite familiar with the first-generation politicians of the Democratic Progressive Party, such as Chen Shui-bian and Hsieh Chang-ting, and had frequent contact with them. However, compared with the current Democratic Progressive Party, there is a big difference in their words and deeds. He described the changes in the Democratic Progressive Party as "power corrupts people, and absolute power corrupts people absolutely." He believed that after the party gains power, it may gradually become secular and lose its original ideals.
Ke Wenzhe pointed out that the DPP was once a party full of ideals, but it has changed beyond recognition in less than 30 years, which deserves future historical review. He also used this to remind the People's Party that it must reflect on the mistakes of other political parties and think about how to avoid making the same mistakes again.
As for the Kuomintang, Ko Wenzhe took Apple as an example and pointed out that even if a company maintains its original brand, it must change its products and business methods with the times, otherwise it will eventually shrink. He believes that the KMT’s problem lies in its obsolescence, and describes its impression as “three lines no matter how you look at it.” He believes that the political party must continue to adjust in order to adapt to the changes of the times.
When it comes to government administration, Ko Wenzhe emphasized that communication should be regarded as part of administrative costs. We should not only prepare project budgets but ignore the time and resources required to communicate with citizens. He criticized that when some governments promote policies, they often want to "secretly" implement them and are afraid to explain it to the public. Only when the public rebounds do they find it difficult to deal with it.
Citing controversies such as incinerators and funeral parks as examples, Ko said that if the government has a policy plan, it should make it public from the beginning so that the public understands why it should be done and how to implement it, instead of trying to muddle through. He believes that communication is not just about announcing policies, but also trying to make the people understand the government's ideas. These tasks require investment of time and cost.
Regarding the recent discussion about whether the People's Party has become a bubble, Ke Wenzhe said that he is not that worried. He said that the average age of the supporters who stayed was younger, and about 70% had a college degree or above, describing such a supporter structure as having a certain social influence.
Ko Wenzhe emphasized that the People's Party has indeed made many mistakes during its development, but what makes it different from other political parties is its willingness to admit problems and continue to correct them. He said that as long as this culture still exists, there is no need to be afraid in the face of blows or failures. The important thing is to learn from mistakes and continue to improve. "If you make a mistake, you are wrong. Repair, repair, and repair again." He believes that the People's Party will get better and better.
