Facing criticism from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) over his government’s handling of appeals by struggling farmers, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday instructed the Council of Agriculture (COA) to protect farmers’ livelihoods by addressing problems caused by the surplus production of bananas.
During a telephone conversation with Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Wu-hsiung (陳武雄), Ma asked the council to establish a notification mechanism to better monitor the production of bananas and papayas, as well as other agricultural produce.
“President Ma is anxious about the surplus production of fruit and has already instructed the council to determine the source of the problem and warn farmers, so that their livelihoods won’t be affected,” Presidential Office spokesman Fan Chiang Tai-chi (范姜泰基) said yesterday.
The issue of surplus production of fruit was raised on Saturday in Nantou County when Ma met a group of residents who served as host families during his long-stay election campaign four years ago.
Banana growers from Pingtung County expressed concern about the low price of bananas.
In response to calls by farmers for the government to address the issue, Ma, who is seeking re--election in January, said: “Why didn’t you tell me about the problem earlier?” adding that the -government could solve the problem by exporting bananas to China.
Two days prior to Ma’s remarks, Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Wang Yi (王毅) said during a reception for Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) in Beijing that China was aware of the banana surplus in Taiwan and could help Taiwanese banana growers.
Ma’s comments drew criticism from the DPP, which accused the president and the government of neglecting a longstanding problem.
During a visit to a banana market in Greater Kaohsiung yesterday, DPP Chairperson and presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) criticized Ma’s comments.
“His remarks amount to not taking responsibility and doing nothing to help banana farmers resolve their problems,” Tsai said.
Responding to the accusations, Fan Chiang yesterday defended the Ma administration’s efforts to help farmers and accused the opposition parties of politicizing the issue.
“The president’s concerns about the issue and his efforts to protect farmers should not be distorted. The opposition should work with the government in seeking solutions to the problem rather than engaging in political rows,” he said.
The COA contacted the Ministry of National Defense and food and beverage manufactures last week to talk about large-scale purchase of bananas, Fan Chiang said.
The government would also continue its efforts to establish a mechanism to better coordinate the production and sale of agricultural produce, he added.
Tsai yesterday proposed the creation of a uniform mechanism for bananas, adding that such a measure would prevent large buyers from aggressively pushing down costs.
Agricultural issues would the one of the future DPP administration’s first priorities, she said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
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