Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and his Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rival Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) faced off in the second and final televised debate yesterday, with Hsieh attacking Ma's cross-strait economic policy, while Ma criticized the performance of the DPP administration.
Proposing to put the "cross-strait common market" to a public vote in a referendum, Hsieh, in his closing remarks, urged voters who support the common market concept to vote for Ma and voters that oppose it to vote for him.
Hsieh said Ma should be clear in presenting the pros and cons of a cross-straight common market.
PHOTO: CNA
"He is dishonest and cheating the Taiwanese public," Hsieh said. "I am against the `one China market' because it undermines the interests of the 23 million people of Taiwan."
Absolute power breeds absolute corruption, Hsieh said. The public must decide whether they want to see one party control both the legislature and Cabinet or two parties balance each other and drive the country forward.
Ma, meanwhile, said the DPP owed the public an apology for failing to meet their expectations.
"Some argue that the DPP administration has `one not and four noes,'" Ma said. "They do not know how to govern, they have no achievements, no talent, no guts and no integrity."
If elected, Ma said he would bring an end to corruption and usher in an era of clean and transparent government.
At the post-debate press conference, Hsieh said he thought it was strange that Ma skipped the "one China market" issue in his opening and closing remarks. He said he suspected that Ma did not have much confidence in the policy.
Ma also lied about his support for the arms procurement budget, Hsieh said, because the KMT blocked the budget for three years.
In his opening remarks, Hsieh said he would do a better job than Ma and was confident he could deliver on his promises if elected.
"I will protect Taiwan's safety, interests and dignity. This is my promise to this land and our ancestors," Hsieh said. "I will be a protector of Taiwan. Not only I am fit for the presidency, but my destiny is connected with that of the country."
Hsieh lambasted Ma's cross-strait economic policy as "unrealistic," saying a national leader with a sound mind would never pin the country's economic development on the whims of another country.
Hsieh also accused Ma of being inconsistent and changing his position under pressure.
Emphasizing the importance of coexistence, Hsieh said that rival political parties must coexist and Taiwan must coexist with China and the rest of the world.
Ma, meanwhile, said the DPP was responsible for worsening ties with Washington. He also accused the DPP administration of neglecting small and medium-size businesses and the needs of low and medium-income families and residents in central and southern Taiwan.
He promised to protect the country and be the pioneer of a new Taiwan.
Ma said the country had regressed during eight years of DPP administration on four fronts: political stability has worsened, the Cabinet has seen repeated shuffles, corruption has increased and the government has flip-flopped on policies.
"It seems the country is for the DPP, by the DPP and of the DPP," he said.
At a press conference after the debate, Ma accused Hsieh of twisting his policies and failing to answer his questions.
Ma rebutted Hsieh's portrayal of him as pessimist about the nation's future. Ma also said he had not lied about his support for arms purchases.
"Hsieh avoided three-and-a-half of my five questions. I asked him to comment on the performance of Minister [of Education] Tu Cheng-sheng [
In response to Hsieh's challenge over his stance on the Regulations for the Handling of and Compensation for the 228 Incident (
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY MO YAN-CHIH
Also See: Presidential election 2008: 12 days to go: Hsieh and Ma face the nation
Also See: Presidential election 2008: 12 days to go: Presidential hopefuls spar on critical issues
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off Yilan at 11:05pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter was located at sea, about 32.3km east of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 72.8km, CWA data showed There were no immediate reports of damage. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Yilan County area on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. It measured 4 in other parts of eastern, northern and central Taiwan as well as Tainan, and 3 in Kaohsiung and Pingtung County, and 2 in Lienchiang and Penghu counties and 1
FOREIGN INTERFERENCE: Beijing would likely intensify public opinion warfare in next year’s local elections to prevent Lai from getting re-elected, the ‘Yomiuri Shimbun’ said Internal documents from a Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company indicated that China has been using the technology to intervene in foreign elections, including propaganda targeting Taiwan’s local elections next year and presidential elections in 2028, a Japanese newspaper reported yesterday. The Institute of National Security of Vanderbilt University obtained nearly 400 pages of documents from GoLaxy, a company with ties to the Chinese government, and found evidence that it had apparently deployed sophisticated, AI-driven propaganda campaigns in Hong Kong and Taiwan to shape public opinion, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. GoLaxy provides insights, situation analysis and public opinion-shaping technology by conducting network surveillance
‘POLITICAL GAME’: DPP lawmakers said the motion would not meet the legislative threshold needed, and accused the KMT and the TPP of trivializing the Constitution The Legislative Yuan yesterday approved a motion to initiate impeachment proceedings against President William Lai (賴清德), saying he had undermined Taiwan’s constitutional order and democracy. The motion was approved 61-50 by lawmakers from the main opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), who together hold a legislative majority. Under the motion, a roll call vote for impeachment would be held on May 19 next year, after various hearings are held and Lai is given the chance to defend himself. The move came after Lai on Monday last week did not promulgate an amendment passed by the legislature that
Taiwan is gearing up to celebrate the New Year at events across the country, headlined by the annual countdown and Taipei 101 fireworks display at midnight. Many of the events are to be livesteamed online. See below for lineups and links: Taipei Taipei’s New Year’s Party 2026 is to begin at 7pm and run until 1am, with the theme “Sailing to the Future.” South Korean girl group KARA is headlining the concert at Taipei City Hall Plaza, with additional performances by Amber An (安心亞), Nick Chou (周湯豪), hip-hop trio Nine One One (玖壹壹), Bii (畢書盡), girl group Genblue (幻藍小熊) and more. The festivities are to
RSS