A few days ago, a poll on the island showed that New Taipei City Mayor Hou Youyi of the Kuomintang ranked first in the ranking of Taiwanese politicians. In two county and mayor governance satisfaction surveys in May and early June, Hou Youyi also ranked No. 1, winning the title of "Five-Star Mayor".
Hou Youyi is considered a "non-traditional KMT politician spanning blue and green" and has few negative reviews. Taiwanese media pointed out that he may represent the KMT in the 2024 "general election", PKing the current Taoyuan Mayor Zheng Wencan from the Democratic Progressive Party. "He is a management talent who talks less about politics and more about municipal administration, and strives to play his current role well. This is why he has high governance satisfaction." Ye Yulan, a good friend of Hou Youyi, a "legislator" of the Kuomintang, and secretary-general of the Asian Police Society, yesterday In an interview with a reporter from the Herald, this college classmate who praised her vigorously told the story of Hou Youyi.
From outstanding students to "security heroes"
Who is the most promising political figure on the island? The Dongsen News Cloud Polling Center recently released a poll showing that Hou Youyi ranked first. In early June, the Taiwan World Press Association announced a satisfaction survey of county mayors across Taiwan. In the "Six Cities" section, Hou Youyi won the first place and became the champion mayor with the best governance. In May, the results of the "County and Mayor's Administrative Satisfaction" survey by "Foresight" magazine were released. Hou Youyi received a 5-star score for the first time. This was also the first time in the 10 years since Taipei City's mayor was upgraded (from Taipei County to New Taipei City). Earned 5 stars. Regarding these rankings, Hou Youyi responded in a low-key manner, thanking everyone for their encouragement and encouragement.
Ye Yulan, Hou Youyi's college classmate, said that Hou Youyi is smart, diligent, capable, and strives to do things well in the present. This quality was fully demonstrated in his college days. According to Ye Yulan, Hou Youyi clocked in "full attendance" when he was in the "Central Police School" and was excellent both in character and study. When they graduated, only two of the 200 people in the same period received a "Certificate of Honor", and Hou Youyi was one of them. After graduation, Hou Youyi went to Taipei City Criminal University as the team leader. Using his strong mathematical analysis skills and intelligence, the old criminal policemen said that "this young guy has a way".
In the impression of the outside world, the most talked about thing in Hou Youyi's career as a criminal police officer is the solving of the 1997 "Bai Xiaoyan (the daughter of the well-known Taiwanese artist Bai Bingbing) murder case." Ye Yulan said that in the 1990s, Taiwan's public security was chaotic, with many serious crimes and murders. It could be said to be Taiwan's "dark period of public security."
After the "Bai Xiaoyan murder case", three suspects fled across Taiwan. Hou Youyi, then captain of the Taipei City Criminal Division, led a team to round up the suspects Lin Chunsheng and Gao Tianmin. The two suspects shot themselves one after another. The last suspect, Chen Jinxing, , sneaked into the residence of Zhuo Maoqi, the "South African Military Attache in Taiwan" with a gun, held his family hostage, and called Hou Youyi by name to enter for negotiations. Hou Youyi entered with bare hands, persuaded Chen Jinxing to surrender, and rescued the hostages. Hou Youyi's "brave police" performance immediately made him a "security hero" on the island.
was successively reused by Chen Shui-bian and Zhu Lilun
. Because of this, Hou Youyi was appreciated by Chen Shui-bian, the mayor of Taipei at the time, and was later reused.
After Chen Shui-bian came to power in 2000, Hou Youyi, who has no party membership, had a smooth career. In 2001, he was promoted to the chief of the Taoyuan County Police Department. In 2003, he was appointed as the "Director of the Criminal Bureau". Three years later, he was promoted to the "Director of Police", becoming the most senior police officer in Taiwan's history. The young "Police Commissioner". Because he was repeatedly promoted by Chen Shui-bian, Hou Youyi's political stance was questioned as being pro-democracy and joining the party. In 2004, Hou Youyi participated in the investigation of the "3.19" shooting case. Panlan did not accept the investigation results and accused Hou Youyi of protecting Chen Shui-bian, who "directed and acted himself." According to reports, Chen Shui-bian once urged Hou Youyi to join the Democratic Progressive Party, but Hou Youyi did not agree.
Ye Yulan introduced that Hou Youyi also met Taoyuan County Magistrate Zhu Lilun because he worked in Taoyuan. Later, he served as the principal of the Taiwan Police University in Taoyuan, and his friendship with Zhu Lilun further deepened. After Zhu Lilun was elected mayor of New Taipei City in 2010, he appointed Hou Youyi as deputy mayor. Hou Youyi also switched from the police to politics and became Zhu Lilun's most effective deputy. In 2018, Hou Youyi campaigned for the New Taipei City mayor's seat on behalf of the Kuomintang and defeated DPP candidate Su Zhenchang with an overwhelming victory.
In Ye Yulan's eyes, Hou Youyi doesn't talk much about politics, pays attention to solving problems, and works hard on municipal affairs, which has won the recognition and high praise of the citizens.
Hou Youyi 2024 has a chance than Zhu Lilun?
Due to his good performance in politics, Hou Youyi ranks high in various polls. After the "boycott of Korea", he has become the "popular king" within the Kuomintang. New Taipei City, under the leadership of Hou Youyi, is still a model city on the island. Public opinion on the island names Hou Youyi as a good candidate for the Kuomintang to compete in the 2024 "general election". When the epidemic broke out this year, Hou Youyi performed well in fighting the epidemic. Even the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Facebook promoted him and shared his anti-epidemic measures. In this regard, some media analysis articles said that the United States has begun to bet on Hou Youyi and Zheng Wencan.
Recently, many Green Camp New Taipei City councilors pointed out that Hou Youyi is targeting 2024 in the parliament. Hou Youyi often laughed bitterly and laughed at himself for this. KMT Taoyuan City Councilor Wu Jiahe also bluntly stated in an interview with China Review News that Hou Youyi has a better chance than former chairman Zhu Lilun as the KMT's candidate for the 2024 "general election". Hou's tough style is outstanding and his support in the polls is also good; on the contrary, Zhu has handed over the reins and has no administrative resources. If Zhu Lilun still wants to challenge 2024, he suggests actively playing the role of "adviser" within the party.
In this regard, Ye Yulan only said in a low-key manner that there is hope for Hou Youyi in the 2024 "election". She said that Hou Youyi's career in politics was brought about by Zhu Lilun. If he runs for office in 2024, it depends on what kind of tacit understanding Hou and Zhu have. She also pointed out that public opinion is like water and tide. According to her observation, Hou Youyi is a discreet, meticulous and pragmatic person. He is more willing to work hard to play his current role.
Some analysts pointed out that Hou Youyi was criticized within the Kuomintang due to his promotion by Chen Shui-bian, his investigation of the March 19 shootings, and his lack of active support in the election of Han Kuo-yu . Some pan-blue people questioned his "blue skin and green skin". bone". In this regard, Ye Yulan pointed out that Hou Youyi often participated in cross-strait activities when he was the deputy mayor of New Taipei City. His wife is from Shanghai. He also said that he was an authentic "Shanghai son-in-law" and said that he had learned a lot from his father-in-law who was from Shanghai. According to Ye Yulan's observation, although Hou Youyi did not talk much about cross-strait issues, she believed that there was no doubt about Hou Youyi's stance of opposing "Taiwan independence" and pursuing cross-strait peace.
Straits Herald reporter Lin Lianjin
