Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday urged President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to pass the DPP’s version of legislation related to farmers’ subsidies in the legislature as soon as possible.
The KMT, which enjoys a majority in the Legislative Yuan, should take the initiative to solve the controversial issue, which has been stalled for months, Tsai said during a presidential campaign stop in Miaoli County.
“We urge President Ma and the KMT to stop its stalling tactics and end its refusal to initiate inter--party negotiation on the bill by speeding up the legislation process to pass the bill before the current legislative session concludes,” she said.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The DPP and the KMT have been engaged in a fierce debate about increasing the elderly farmers’ monthly subsidy, which is NT$6,000 per month.
Different proposals, including ones drafted by the DPP caucus, the KMT caucus, the Executive Yuan and several KMT legislators, still need to be discussed in the legislature.
The DPP caucus proposed raising the monthly subsidy by NT$1,000, but the Executive Yuan on Oct. 20 decided it should be increased by NT$316.
Tsai said that the production of various agricultural produce around the country, — and fruit in particular — has become unbalanced of late.
“However, President Ma has turned a blind eye to the phenomenon, which is difficult to understand because Ma has been traveling around the nation and should be able to understand what is happening,” she added.
The amendment to the Temporary Statute Regarding the Welfare Pension of Senior Farmers (老年農民福利津貼暫行條例) has not cleared the legislature because the issue of farmers’ subsidies has come to resemble a bidding war between the two parties ahead of the Jan. 14 presidential and legislative elections.
While the DPP has proposed an increase to NT$7,000, a number of KMT legislators have come up with different proposals, including increases to NT$7,500 and NT$10,000 a month.
Three KMT legislators, Chung Shao-ho (鍾紹和), Chang Chia-chun (張嘉郡) and Wong Chung-chun (翁重鈞), have said that they would firmly oppose the Executive Yuan’s proposal.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
Greenpeace yesterday said that it is to appeal a decision last month by the Taipei High Administrative Court to dismiss its 2021 lawsuit against the Ministry of Economic Affairs over “loose” regulations governing major corporate electricity consumers. The climate-related lawsuit — the first of its kind in Taiwan — sought to require the government to enforce higher green energy thresholds on major corporations to reduce emissions in light of climate change and an uptick in extreme weather. The suit, filed by Greenpeace East Asia, the Environmental Jurists Association and four individual plaintiffs, was dismissed on May 8 following four years of litigation. The
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their