Justin Huang (; born 6 November 1959) is a Taiwanese politician. Like his father
Huang Ching-fong, Justin Huang joined the
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
. He was a member of the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
from 1996 to 2000. Huang was first elected to the
Legislative Yuan
The Legislative Yuan is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for 4-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a parallel v ...
in 2001. He served two full terms on the Legislative Yuan, and was reelected to a third in 2008. Huang stepped as a legislator in 2009 to run for
Taitung County Magistrate. After two terms as county magistrate, Huang left office in 2018.
Education
Huang obtained his bachelor's degree from the Department of International Trade of
National Chengchi University
National Chengchi University () is a public research university in Taipei. The university is also considered as the earliest public service training facility of the Republic of China. First established in Nanjing in 1927, the university was subs ...
. In 1981 he left Taiwan to study at
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, where he completed a Master of Business Administration.
National Assembly
On 23 March 1996, Huang ran for the
1996 Republic of China National Assembly election for
Taitung County Constituency in which he and two other
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
(KMT) candidates won and took office on 20 May 1996.
Legislative Yuan
2001 legislative election
On 1 December 2001, Huang ran for the
2001 Republic of China legislative election
The 2001 Taiwanese legislative election was held on 1 December 2001. All 225 seats of the Legislative Yuan were up for election: 168 elected by popular vote, 41 elected on the basis of the proportional representation based of the nationwide vot ...
for
Taitung County Constituency in which he won and took office on 1 February 2002 succeeding legislator
Hsu Ching-yuan.
2004 legislative election
On 11 December 2004, Huang ran for the
2004 Republic of China legislative election
The 2004 Taiwanese legislative election was held on 11 December 2004. All 225 seats of the Legislative Yuan were up for election: 168 elected by single non-transferable vote, 41 elected through proportional representation, party-list Proportio ...
for
Taitung County Constituency in which he won again and took office on 1 February 2005.
2008 legislative election
On 12 January 2008, Huang ran for the
2008 Republic of China legislative election for
Taitung County Constituency in which he won again.
Taitung County Magistrate
2009 local election
Huang was elected Magistrate of Taitung County after winning the
2009 Republic of China local election under the
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
on 5 December 2009 and assumed office on 20 December 2009. Due to this winning, he had to release his seat as legislator at the
Legislative Yuan
The Legislative Yuan is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for 4-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a parallel v ...
of
Taitung County Constituency. He was succeeded by Lai Kun-cheng (賴坤成) of the
Democratic Progressive Party
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a Taiwanese nationalist and centre-left political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). Controlling both the Republic of China presidency and the unicameral Legislative Yuan, it is the majori ...
.
2014 local election
He was reelected for a second term in 2014 after winning the
2014 Republic of China local election on 29 November 2014 and took office on 25 December the same year.
Administration goals
In his 'Governor's Column', Justin Huang vowed to ''“Clean up corruption"'' in Taitung politics, and ''“Listen to the people... not lazy bureaucrats”'' in order to create jobs through development. In his autobiography Huang reflected: ''“Taitung is the first and only county to have passed the Taitung Autonomous Landscape Regulations Management Act which aims to protect the environment and develop local construction at the same time."'' The centrepiece of this was a new resort district along the coastal countryside of Taitung.
Huang made 18 trips to
Mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
to promote Taitung as a potential high-volume tourism resource. He promised to ''“Allow tour buses to freely travel”'', while at the same time ''“Develop culture”'' and ''“Support indigenous youth”''.
Popularity
Justin Huang received generally high popularity rankings while serving as Taitung Magistrate although discrepancies between different polls are evident. Whereas Global Views Monthly polls described Justin Huang and Hualien Magistrate
Fu Kun-chi
Fu Kun-chi (; born 8 May 1962) is a Taiwanese politician. He was a member of the Legislative Yuan from 2002 to 2009, when he assumed the Hualien County magistracy. In September 2018, Fu was removed from the latter office, as the Supreme Court is ...
as ''“regulars in the ‘five-star club’”'' during the same period (2015-16), Huang ranked 10th and 8th out of 13 county magistrates in CommonWealth Magazine polls.
In the 2018 CommonWealth poll, ''“Justin Huang (黃健庭) ... ranked second, followed by then-Hualien County commissioner (magistrate)
Fu Kun-chi
Fu Kun-chi (; born 8 May 1962) is a Taiwanese politician. He was a member of the Legislative Yuan from 2002 to 2009, when he assumed the Hualien County magistracy. In September 2018, Fu was removed from the latter office, as the Supreme Court is ...
(傅崐萁)”''
Achievements as Magistrate
During his two terms as County Magistrate, Huang lists his achievements as overseeing the introduction of the Taiwan International Balloon Festival (臺灣國際熱氣球間年華) and the Taitung Open of Surfing, redeveloping the
Taitung Station
Taitung () is a railway station of Taiwan Railways Administration. It lies at the junction of the Hualien-Taitung line and the South-link line in Taitung City, Taitung County, Taiwan.
History
During the construction work of the back part of Taitu ...
while building a shopping mall and movie theater at the site of the old Taitung train station, pushing for the
Puyuma express
The ''Puyuma Express'' () is a type of railway service on Taiwan Railways (TRA) notable for using tilting trains. It began commercial service on 6 February 2013 during the Spring Festival.
''Puyuma Express'' was commissioned by the TRA in ord ...
train to Taitung, and resolving the Taitung incinerator crisis.
Pharmaceutical corruption charges
In 2008, Huang was indicted on charges about accepting bribes or using his position as
legislator
A legislator (also known as a deputy or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people of the state. Legislatures may be supra-national (for ex ...
in relation to the Lotus (美時公司), Fisherman (派頓製藥公司), and I Sheng Pharmaceutical companies (羿盛公司) in 2004 and 2005, respectively. Huang denied the accusations. He was found guilty of violating the Accountancy Act with regard to processing payments from Lotus Pharmaceutical proxies through his charity foundations, and not guilty on all counts of corruption in 2016. He was sentenced to a combined 10 months of jail, later reduced into a fine due to the application of the 'Speedy Trial Act'.
Nomination for Control Yuan
On 20 June 2020, it was reported that Justin Huang had been
President Tsai’s nomination to become vice-President of the
Control Yuan
The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Prior to constitutional reforms in the 1990s, the Control Yuan, along with National Assembly (electoral college) and the Legislative ...
- an oversight branch of government that monitors and conducts investigations into the activities of the other branches. Huang’s Taitung County government was itself investigated and censured over its handling of the Miramar Resort.
However, a press conference scheduled to announce the nominations on 19 June was indefinitely canceled due to bipartisan criticism of the decision. Huang’s own party, the KMT, threatened to expel him for accepting a DPP nomination without prior consultation, while several DPP legislatures voiced concerns, including Lin Shu-fen (林淑芬), who wrote: “It is incomprehensible that the proposed nominee for vice president is someone who has been convicted of corruption, and helped a business push through the controversial development of the
Taitung Miramar Resort (美麗灣渡假村)... by flouting the law and the rights of
Aboriginals.” The New Power Party cited Huang’s role in promoting Miramar Resort as well as “his alleged acceptance of fees from pharmaceutical firms when he was a legislator and other legal disputes.”
In response, Huang held a press conference, where he announced: “If the KMT doesn’t support my nomination, I will withdraw from the party.” He then thanked President Tsai for her trust in him, saying he sought the position because “the Control Yuan exercises independent power beyond all party affiliations, and this is a role where I could do something for the nation and for society.” Following continued opposition, the next day Huang announced he had decided to withdraw from the nomination.
Later political career
Huang's nomination as
Secretary-General of the Kuomintang
The Secretary-General of the Kuomintang is the chief of staff of the Kuomintang, nominated by the Chairman of the Kuomintang, chairperson and confirmed by the Central Committee. The position was created in 1926 and is currently held on by Justin Hu ...
was approved at the
21st National Congress on 30 October 2021.
Personal life
Huang is the son of former
Taitung County Magistrate and
KMT
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
Internal Affairs Central Commissioner, .
In 1987, Justin Huang married Chen Lien-yen (陳怜燕). As a couple, they are prominent members of the Taiwan Christian community. Chen introduced Huang to Christianity when they met while studying together at
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...
in the 1980s. Huang was baptized by Top Church Pastor, Chang Mao-song (張茂松).
Huang is also the director of the Taitung County Young Workers’ Association, as well as being the founder and chairman of the Healthy Families Cultural and Educational Foundation, and the Taitung Student Parent Foundation.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huang, Justin
1959 births
Living people
Kuomintang Members of the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan
Santa Clara University School of Business alumni
National Chengchi University alumni
Members of the 5th Legislative Yuan
Members of the 6th Legislative Yuan
Members of the 7th Legislative Yuan
Magistrates of Taitung County
Taitung County Members of the Legislative Yuan