Developing a strong economy for sustainable livelihoods is the unavoidable responsibility of a national leader and President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) should put his money where his mouth is, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday in response to Ma’s National Day speech.
“The biggest wish of Taiwanese on National Day is to enjoy a better standard of living, rather than watching a president talking,” Su said in Lioujiao Township (六腳), Chiayi County.
“Instead of boasting about tomorrow, I would advise the president visit local communities and gain first-hand experience of people’s suffering,” said Su, who turned down an invitation from the Presidential Office to attend the National Day ceremony.
Photo: CNA
The Ma administration has failed to listen to the people’s voice, evidenced by the president’s recent “inflammatory remark” that laziness was why people do not exercise as often as they should.
Tsai, who also skipped the ceremony and visited Nantou County, told reporters the economy is key for Taiwan and that people expect a competent and responsible government to help the country emerge from the economic slump.
Asked to comment on Ma’s speech, Tsai said his pledges were empty and sounded “more like a first-year president than a fifth-year president” because Ma “keeps telling people what he plans to do, rather than what he has achieved.”
The former DPP presidential candidate also offered advice to Ma on her Facebook page.
Quoting former US president Andrew Jackson, who said the greatness of an administration is built upon freedom, abundance and the fearlessness of its people, Tsai said a government which lacks the determination to safeguard freedoms and cannot take care of people’s everyday lives is not qualified to demand the loyalty of its people.
The worsening economic situation, including rising prices, an growing unemployment rate, furloughs and stagnant wages, has affected everyone — young and old — nationwide, Tsai said.
“The government appears to be the culprit of the people’s suffering,” she wrote.
The Ma administration has turned a deaf ear to warnings about the economy from the DPP and academics, Tsai said, adding that Taiwan’s overdependence on the Chinese market and the failure of industries to upgrade had hurt the nation’s global competitiveness.
Ma’s decision to raise electricity and fuel prices was like adding fuel to the fire, as the poor get poorer and the middle-class is struggling like never before, she said.
Tsai said she had expressed hope that Ma would “listen to the voice of the people, and take care of each and every Taiwanese” in her concession speech on the night of the presidential election on Jan. 14, but it is obvious that Ma had not been listening.
“I want to remind you [Ma] again, on National Day, that people are not required to lend unconditional support to the country unless their freedoms and well-being are amply protected,” Tsai said.
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
CONCESSION: A Shin Kong official said that the firm was ‘willing to contribute’ to the nation, as the move would enable Nvidia Crop to build its headquarters in Taiwan Shin Kong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽) yesterday said it would relinquish land-use rights, or known as surface rights, for two plots in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), paving the way for Nvidia Corp to expand its office footprint in Taiwan. The insurer said it made the decision “in the interest of the nation’s greater good” and would not seek compensation from taxpayers for potential future losses, calling the move a gesture to resolve a months-long impasse among the insurer, the Taipei City Government and the US chip giant. “The decision was made on the condition that the Taipei City Government reimburses the related
FRESH LOOK: A committee would gather expert and public input on the themes and visual motifs that would appear on the notes, the central bank governor said The central bank has launched a comprehensive redesign of New Taiwan dollar banknotes to enhance anti-counterfeiting measures, improve accessibility and align the bills with global sustainability standards, Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) told a meeting of the legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday. The overhaul would affect all five denominations — NT$100, NT$200, NT$500, NT$1,000 and NT$2,000 notes — but not coins, Yang said. It would be the first major update to the banknotes in 24 years, as the current series, introduced in 2001, has remained in circulation amid rapid advances in printing technology and security standards. “Updating the notes is essential to safeguard the integrity
RSS