LT: What are the DPP’s mid and long-term objectives and plans, in terms of party development?
Tsai: The DPP has made significant progress over the last few years, but that is not to say that there are not some areas in which we can improve as a party. We need to build more trust among the public and make them believe that they can really hand the reins of the country back to us.
I don’t think it right to discuss too far into the future. Having said that, there are three things I would like the DPP to achieve before 2012. First, I would like to see us win at least three posts in the 2010 special municipality elections.
The places we win will form the foundation of our bid for victory in 2012, and I would like at least one in the north and north central areas. Second, the party needs to produce a comprehensive and complete set of political ideas and policies, to show what we stand for.
We want to present ourselves to the public again, but they are going to be asking us where we want to take the country. They will be asking us what we have, policy wise, to offer as an alternative to President Ma Ying-jeou’s policies. We cannot rely on the superstars within the party, or hope that the KMT are going to slip up, if we want to win the election. It is imperative that we can provide some kind of vision of how we want to see Taiwan develop, if we are going to win the people’s trust.
I believe that the gap in support for the ruling party is because of a question of credibility, and this is something that the DPP needs to think long and hard about if we are to break through the current blue- green deadlock.
Now that President Ma has fallen from grace, Taiwan has been left without a king to lead it into the future. We cannot rely on some superstar figure to come and elevate the party, we have to move forward as a whole. It is important for us to present a clear image and set of ideas to the public, and build on the trust of the people to give our candidates the best possible chance.
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