Despite robust competition among local governments for their cities or counties to be upgraded to special municipalities, Taichung City Mayor Jason Hu said Tuesday that one each should be established in northern, central and southern Taiwan so as to achieve balanced regional development. Hu made the remarks after stating reasons why Taichung City and Taichung County in central Taiwan should be merged into a special municipality, in a meeting of a panel convened by Minister of the Interior Liao Liou-yi to review seven similar applications from 11 local governments. Taipei County Magistrate Chou Hsi-wei, Taoyuan County Magistrate Eric Chu, Taitung County Magistrate Huang Chung-sheng, Changhua County Magistrate Cho Po- yuan, Yunlin County Magistrate Su Chih-fen, Chiayi County Magistrate Chen Ming- wen, Tainan City Mayor Hsu Tain-tsair, Tainan County Magistrate Su Huan-jhih, Kaohsiung City Mayor Chen Chu and Kaohsiung County Magistrate Yang Chiu-hsing all presented their cases at the meeting. Hu said he is confident that the Taichung City and Taichung County application would be approved, but added that it would give a boost to the country's overall competitiveness if a municipality is formed in each of the three major regions. Brushing aside rampant rumors that it has been predetermined that Taichung City and Taichung County will be merged into a special municipality, Hu said that those allegations are unfair. He pointed out that one of President Ma Ying- jeou's campaign promises was to establish 'three municipalities and 15 counties' in Taiwan. Asked whether he is concerned about the fact that most local governments seeking an upgrade are eyeing bigger budgets and improved finances, Hu said that is an issue that President Ma and the central government should examine, as many localities have problems of revenue shortfalls. Special municipalities fall under the direct jurisdiction of the central government and are entitled to have bigger budgets than other local governments. Addressing the meeting, Liao said the panel's decisions would turn a new page in Taiwan's development. The critical issue is how to boost Taiwan's international competitiveness through the restructuring of central government functions and rezoning of administrative areas, he stressed. Later in the day, Kaohsiung City Mayor Chen Chu said the proposed merger with Kaohsiung County is designed to address urgent development needs in southern Taiwan. Taiwan not only has to compete with Japan and South Korea, but also faces competition from China, particularly from southern China, Chen said. It is therefore very important to sharpen the competitive edge of the greater Kaohsiung area in southern Taiwan and strike a balance in development between the north and south, she said. For his part, Kaohsiung County Magistrate Yang said an upgrade of the Kaohsiung area is urgently necessary and that 78 percent of the county's residents support such a plan. Kaohsiung City and Kaohsiung County complement each other, and a merger, backed by an additional budget of NT$13 billion (US$393 million) , will definitely boost regional competitiveness on a wide range of fronts, he said. However, if the Taichung area is merged first, Kaohsiung would be marginalized, he added. Meanwhile, the agricultural counties of Yunlin and Chiayi are also seeking to merge to facilitate development into an 'agricultural municipality' that would mean greater economic prosperity. Yunlin County has a population of over 720,000, while Chiayi County's is about 540,000. If they are merged, the combined population will be some 1.26 million people, which is in excess of the minimum 1 million specified for a special municipality, Chiayi County Magistrate Chen Ming-wen said. 