The Presidential Office yesterday remained evasive about the format of the planned meeting between President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), saying the debate sought by the DPP was part of a “dialogue” the president hoped to hold with the opposition leader.
Presidential Office Spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said the DPP hoped the two would engage in a debate on the trade pact in their capacity as party leaders. Ma douobles as chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
“Debate is a form of dialogue, Lo said. “We welcome any rational discussions and I believe the two parties will negotiate the details with utmost sincerity.”
On a trip to the South Pacific last week, Ma said he was willing to talk with Tsai about an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) the government intends to sign with China.
Lo on Monday said Ma was willing to engage in “dialogue” with Tsai. The DPP on Monday called on Ma to send somebody within seven days to discuss arrangements for the meeting. Presidential Office Secretary-General Liao Liou-yi (廖了以) telephoned DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) on Monday afternoon.
Lo yesterday said the call was made as a courtesy and that more discussions would be necessary to work out the details.
Asked whether the DPP had set too many preconditions for the proposed talks, Lo said he did not want to speculate but believed the public could be the judge of that.
The DPP said the KMT should abide by earlier comments agreeing to a debate.
“A debate is a debate. We want Ma and the KMT to stop playing word games with us and avoiding the issue,” DPP spokesperson Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) said.
“The ECFA debate is not just a DPP request, it’s something that every Taiwanese wants to see happen … The most important thing is to hold a public debate that can increase the public’s understanding of the issue,” Lin said.
The DPP has called for further face-to-face talks between the two secretary-generals later this week, saying that its position was that the earlier the debate took place, the better.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
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