Han Kuo-yu of the pro-Beijing Kuomintang stunned the president’s party in Kaohsiung

Nikkei Asian Review
Date: December 01, 2018
By: Lauly Li and Cheng Ting-Fang, Nikkei staff writers

Kaohsiung Mayor-elect Han Kuo-yu, who described himself as a “bald guy who sells vegetables” during the campaign, celebrates his victory on Nov. 25.   © Reuters

KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan — Three days after a stunning election win, the mayor-elect of the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung made his first public appearance since polling day with an impromptu broadcast on Facebook.

More than 100,000 viewers tuned in at 10 p.m. last Tuesday to watch the 61-year-old Han Kuo-yu, sporting scruffy pajamas, speak on the broadcast hosted by his 23-year-old daughter. The Beijing-friendly Kuomintang (KMT) politician said he had been sleeping off a cold and was trying to form a new team for the city government, before making a slew of promises that echoed his slogan of “showing Kaohsiung the money.”

“I want to let everyone know that we’ve got more than 10 companies telling us that they are willing to make big bets in Kaohsiung,” he said, using rhetoric akin to U.S. President Donald Trump’s pledge to bring jobs back to America.

Having reached out to Terry Gou, chairman of key iPhone assembler Foxconn Technology, after the Nov. 24 election to encourage the company to invest in the city, the self-styled “CEO mayor” then amplified his claims of business interest in the region.    [FULL  STORY]