President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) and Premier Mao Chih-kuo’s (毛治國) approval ratings remained low at 21.9 percent and 19.3 percent respectively, according to the newest poll by the Taiwan Brain Trust think tank.
In direct correlation to their low popularity, dissatisfaction with Ma and Mao stood at 69.9 percent and 57.4 percent respectively, the survey released yesterday showed.
The widespread public dissatisfaction with the Ma administration was also reflected in their dissatisfaction with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), which stood at 71.8 percent.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) garnered a more favorable 42.3 percent satisfaction rating, but 45 percent also said they were dissatisfied with the party’s performance.
The poll found that 54.5 percent of respondents were confident about the DPP’s ability to maintain peaceful development of cross-strait relations should it win the presidential election next year, while 36 percent were unconvinced.
Asked whom they would support in the Jan. 16 presidential election if the candidates remained Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of the DPP, Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) of the KMT and James Soong (宋楚瑜) of the People First Party, 46.8 percent of respondents chose Tsai, 17.2 percent picked Hung and 16.7 percent favored Soong.
Support for Soong dropped from 23.6 percent in July, when he ranked second.
Taiwan Brain Trust’s poll center director Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said the party’s decision to send PFP Secretary-General Chin Chin-sheng (秦金生) to attend the Chinese military parade in Beijing on Sept. 3 hurt support for Soong.
The decision also hurt the PFP’s legislator election standings, with the poll showing PFP party votes standing at 5.6 percent, trailing behind the New Power Party’s 6.8 percent.
When asked about their perceptions of former vice president Lien Chan’s (連戰) participation in the military parade, 52.1 percent of respondents said Lien’s participation had a negative effect on cross-strait relations, while 29.2 percent felt it had a positive contribution.
The poll showed that 54. 6 percent of respondents felt that the event in itself had a negative effect on the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, while 20.8 percent felt it had a positive effect.
It also found that 44.4 percent of respondents thought China to be the nation with the most influence on Taiwan’s presidential election, while 39.2 percent and 2.9 percent felt that the US and Japan respectively were the most influential.
If China were to vocally support a particular candidate, 85.6 percent of respondents said they would not support that candidate, while 6.3 percent said they would.
On economic issues, 64.2 percent said economic development is the primary issue in next year’s presidential election, followed by government effectiveness at 12.7 percent. Only 4.5 percent of polled individuals felt that cross-strait policies should be prioritized.
The poll found that 41.1 percent of respondents felt that Tsai was the most qualified to handle Taiwan’s economic problems, with Soong coming in second at 24.5 percent. Hung trailed at 9.8 percent.
The survey, conducted from Saturday last week to Monday, with 1,070 valid samples, has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
SIX SUBSIDIES: The monthly allowance for older farmers is to increase to NT$10,000, and NT$5,000 is to be given to homemakers under the national pension system, Lai said The government is to implement major welfare policies for disadvantaged groups, including raising the monthly allowance for older farmers to NT$10,000 and providing homemakers with NT$5,000 per month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks during a visit to Wangling Temple in Chiayi County, saying that the planned increases were being introduced amid economic growth and an increase in tax revenue. Touting a policy, in which the government plans to provide a monthly allowance of NT$5,000 for every child under the age of 18 in a bid to address Taiwan’s low birthrate, Lai said that if received for the
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
ISOLATION: The outposts would serve as support and backup bases, forcing US forces to either face China head-on or reroute, increasing travel time and operational costs China’s outposts in the South China Sea could be used to delay and constrain foreign forces during a conflict in the Taiwan Strait, giving Beijing a critical window to carry out amphibious landing and blockade operations, a report said. The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) forward operating bases on islands and reclaimed features in the South China Sea could delay foreign forces long enough for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to secure a key 48-to-72-hour window in the Taiwan Strait, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council found. The report, conducted by the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, examined
RSS