Cabinet Secretary-General Chen Chin-jun (
Close to one month has elapsed since the Cabinet made the announcement, and yet there has been no sign of a follow-up on the matter -- with the notable exception of a TV spot featuring Government Information Office Minister Shieh Jhy-wey (謝志偉) calling on the electorate to take part in the DPP-initiated referendum on reclaiming the KMT's "stolen assets" and waxing on the benefits of doing so. He said the money would be used to pay for schoolchildren's lunches and as tuition subsidies for children from low-income households.
Amid the seeming DPP idleness, the KMT, meanwhile, seems to having embarked on a joy ride thanks to its abundant party resources. Since the KMT national congress' formal endorsement in June of Ma Ying-jeou (
Last month alone, the KMT rolled out at least four TV spots that were aired several times a day on a number of TV channels.
One wonders how much the KMT must have paid to produce these lengthy TV promotions, as well as what the cost must have been to buy such a number of TV commercial slots.
It is no secret that the KMT has been selling its assets. What's truly horrifying is the thought that the KMT may now be selling assets it stole from the people to fund its bid to regain power.
The DPP, however, also bears some of the blame. Whenever elections approach, the DPP starts calling for the assets stolen by the KMT to be reclaimed. That, in and of itself, is unimpeachable. What is deplorable is the fact that once the ballots have been cast and the elections have been concluded, all that noise about the stolen assets turns to an eerie silence.
The DPP government's repeated inability or unwillingness to follow through on its commitment to giving back to the people what is theirs has led to disappointment. Some, perhaps not unfairly, have even questioned if it is genuinely committed to achieving justice on that front.
As next month's legislative elections and the presidential election in March draw closer, the pitch of the DPP's call on the KMT to return the stolen assets will once again increase.
What will be interesting to see is whether this time around the request is more than just an electoral ploy.
Crying wolf might not be the best way to describe the DPP's use of the KMT stolen assets issue at election time. But the underlying principle is the same: If, through repetition and inaction, people start thinking they are being taken for fools, the DPP's message could very well turn against it and serve instead as a means to highlight its insincerity.
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