President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who is seeking re-election as the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate, yesterday urged voters to “give [her] four more years,” saying “the next four years will be better.”
“Jan. 11 next year is key to protecting democracy and freedom,” Tsai said at an event in Taoyuan for independent Legislator Chao Cheng-yu (趙正宇).
Taiwan has become an aged society, she said, adding that since 2016, the government has pushed for long-term care, increasing its budget funding from NT$5 billion (US$165.5 million) to an estimated NT$40 billion next year.
Photo: Hung Mei-hsiuh, Taipei Times
The government hopes for seniors to receive the best service, whether at home, in their communities or at long-term care facilities, she said.
At another campaign event in Hsinchu, Tsai said that under the previous Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration, the economy experienced negative growth.
“Now, Taiwan is first among the four [Asian] Tigers,” she said, adding that the nation’s economy has grown for 14 consecutive quarters, because many people are returning to Taiwan to invest.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Overseas Taiwanese businesses have pledged to invest NT$800 billion, she added.
While campaigning for DPP Legislator Lu Sun-ling (呂孫綾) in New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水), Tsai said that she hoped people would vote for a candidate who can “take Taiwan forward,” instead of a “naysayer.”
Later in the evening, Tsai attended a concert in Taipei featuring heavy metal band Chthonic. The band’s lead vocalist is independent Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐), who is also seeking re-election.
Meanwhile, People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜), the party’s presidential candidate, said in a live-streamed interview yesterday that the KMT has been “controlled by a minority comprador group” when it comes to cross-strait affairs.
On the issue of pension reform, Soong said that the government would not be short of money if the DPP government could only clamp down on corruption.
Asked whether he regretted following former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), Soong said that in the early days, Taiwan democratized through a “peaceful revolution,” as then-president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) knew that was the trend.
Lee, who at the time served as vice president and later became Taiwan’s first directly elected president, continued what Chiang did not finish, Soong added.
Today, the PFP hosts a relay around the nation on electric scooters, with legislator-at-large nominees visiting social welfare facilities.
Soong and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) would meet on the relay, Soong’s campaign spokeswoman Belle Yu (于美人) said, adding that the PFP hopes to run a “positive” campaign without manipulating other groups.
Additional reporting by Chou Hsiang-yun,
Hung Mei-hsiu and Chen Yu-fu
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