Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers differed widely in their reaction to the CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets’ latest report, which predicted that the 2012 presidential election was the “KMT's to lose.”
The Hong Kong-based firm released a report on Tuesday titled The KMT as its own worst enemy, which said that while Ma was heading in the right direction by adopting China-leaning policies, the KMT could still lose the next presidential election because of “self-inflicted” wounds.
CLSA senior analyst Bruce Warden said in the report that the KMT’s record of administrative achievements was poor and it appeared to be insensitive to public opinion.
The image of Ma’s administration suffered many setbacks because of several recent events, including its inadequate response to the flooding caused by Typhoon Morakot in August, Warden said, adding that the DPP was catching up to the KMT, which would be the greatest threat for Ma and the KMT.
KMT legislators shrugged off the report, with KMT Legislator Lu Hsueh-chang (呂學樟) saying it was simply an evaluation by a foreign company. It might not fully understand Taiwan’s political scene, he said.
“It is impossible for the company to know what may happen in 2012. The company is not God,” Lu said.
KMT Legislator Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀) questioned the objectivity of the report, saying it was too early for anyone to jump to the conclusion that Ma would lose if he ran for re-election.
DPP lawmakers, however, said the report showed Ma needs to have a “clear change of direction” in his policies and take into account public concerns over the economic cooperation framework pact with China the government plans to sign before June.
“If the KMT continues its current policies, which includes secret negotiations [with China], it’s not only Ma’s term that will end in 2012, but the entire nation will be finished by then,” DPP Legislator Lee Chun-yee (李俊毅) said.
DPP caucus whip Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) said Ma’s inability to clearly communicate his policies and address public concerns over them were some of the reasons behind CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets’ findings.
DPP Legislator William Lai (賴清德) said that previous predictions by the brokerage and investment group turned out to be correct, including its prediction that then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) would win his reelection bid in the 2004.
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary