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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Ko says Hsinchu visit purely administrative
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, second right, Hsinchu County Commissioner Yang Wen-ke, second left, and their respective wives, Peggy Chen, right, and Kan Hsiu-mei, pound tea leaves, rice and ginger to make Hakka-style leicha （“thunder tea”） in Hsinchu County’s Beipu District yesterday. Photo: Liao Hsueh-ju, Taipei Times
‘STOP OVERTHINKING’: The Taipei mayor said the visit had nothing to do with forming a political alliance, and was to exchange ideas about Hsinchu County’s smart town plan
By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je （柯文哲） yesterday visited Hsinchu County Commissioner Yang Wen-ke （楊文科） in Hsinchu, saying they were exchanging administrative ideas, while rejecting speculation that it could mean the Taiwan People’s Party （TPP） and Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） might one day cooperate.
Ko, accompanied by his wife, Peggy Chen （陳佩琪）, led city government officials on the visit. They stopped at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s Museum of Innovation in the morning, attended an exchange meeting at noon and visited Beipu Township’s （北埔） old street in the afternoon.
Hsinchu County is an important area for Taiwan’s high-tech industry, as it includes the Hsinchu Science Park （新竹科學園區）, Hsinchu Industrial Park （新竹工業區）, Tai Yuen Hi-Tech Industrial Park （台元科技園區） and Hsinchu Biomedical Science Park （新竹生醫園區）, Ko said.
Hsinchu County has been pushing a cultural technology smart town project, which coincides with Taipei’s plan to create a smart city, so he wanted local government department heads to take the opportunity to exchange ideas and learn from each other, he said.
Asked about speculation that his visit might imply cooperation between the TPP, of which Ko is the chairman, and the KMT, of which Yang is a member, Ko said: “The visit is purely to exchange administrative experience, and people should stop overthinking.”
Ko also said that “people are overthinking” when rejecting speculation that his visits to other counties might be in preparation for elections.
Education and cultural department officials, as well as Hakka Affairs Council officials, were able to discuss many issues and make immediate decisions during the visit, he said.
Asked if he would get the COVID-19 vaccine to encourage more people to get vaccinated, Ko said he would follow the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s priority list and not attract attention by being different.
Yang said he believes that people would be willing to get vaccinated if their questions about the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine are answered.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
