MOVING OUT
Hsieh said that tens of thousands of people had to move out of Taipei during Ma's eight-year stint as mayor because housing prices had skyrocketed.
Young people are deterred from coming to Taipei, he said, because they simply cannot afford the cost of living in the city.
"While Ma's economic plan is based on figures, my plan makes people's welfare and happiness the priority," he said.
Addressing the opening ceremony of his campaign headquarters, Ma denounced the DPP for damaging the country through its poor performance, and promised to lay the foundation for peace and prosperity should he win the March 22 election.
"The damage caused by the DPP was five times more serious than that caused by the 921 earthquake and 10 times more serious than the aftermath of Typhoon Nari," Ma said in front of his campaign headquarters on Aikuo E Road.
"I will spare no effort to regain power and clean up the mess left by the DPP. I will lay the foundation for a 100-year period of peace and prosperity for Taiwan," he said.
FIRST STEP
The opening of the new legislature on Friday, Ma said, was merely the first step toward reform. He urged voters to give the KMT another victory on March 22 so that the new government would have a harmonious relationship with the legislature.
"Reform will not be successful and people's lives will not improve unless the government works closely with the legislature," he said.
Amid cheers from hundreds of supporters who crowded around his headquarters, Ma pledged to build a "new Taiwan" if elected, promising to establish a clean government, revive the economy, pursue justice and promote creativity and the nation's continued cultural development.
KMT heavyweights, including Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄), Wang and former KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰), joined Ma and Siew on stage and presented the presidential candidate with two stems of sugar cane as a symbol of the campaign's continuous progress and prosperity.
Additional reporting by Jenny W. Hsu
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