Minister Yiong expressed gratitude to Legislator Yeh Chu-lan for her tenacity to establish Hakka TV in 2003. At the time, Minister Yiong served as the preparation taskforce convener, yet had zero experience in TV station operations. He also thanked Taiwan Public Television Service employees for the generous assistance they provided at this stage. Hakka TV had a budget of merely NT$400 million in the beginning. Even after being considered a community-specific channel and prompting budget discussions as a result of the Public Television Act amendment, it was ultimately unable to secure support in view of the political environment back then. HAC had to directly allocate funds and outsource operations through bidding. Strictly speaking, Hakka TV was not a TV station yet, but a TV channel and a HAC project.
Minister Yiong further clarified that after the Public Television Act amendment was passed last year, Hakka TV officially joined TBS and HAC allotted Hakka TV’s operating budget to the Taiwan Public Television Service Foundation in the form of a donation, alongside the intellectual property and physical equipment accumulated over Hakka TV’s 21 year-long trajectory as a TV channel. In the future, Hakka TV will enjoy greater autonomy and facilitate major progress in Taiwan’s public broadcasting. Additionally, the Executive Yuan implemented the National Languages Promotion Plan last year, from which HAC obtained NT$200 million as budget for Hakka TV. Summed with the former NT$400 million, Hakka TV now has NT$600 million to fund operations, and further growth is expected in the future. The future holds great prospects for Taiwan’s content industry. As a TBS member, Hakka TV is also set to showcase the Hakka and culture to the world in even more captivating ways.
Hakka TV CEO Paul Shiang also thanked HAC for its support and cultivation on behalf of Hakka TV, enabling Hakka TV to become a valuable part of the drive to promote Taiwanese Hakka culture. As Hakka TV enters its 21st year in 2024, this marks the start of its adulthood, a great stride towards a robust and wonderful future. Hakka TV will stay true to its mission and spare no effort in extolling Hakka culture, all with HAC’s blessing.
