Opposition candidates in the presidential election revealed yesterday generous plans for future social welfare and health insurance payment reform.
DPP presidential hopeful Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) unveiled his proposed reforms in social welfare policy for the elderly, pledging subsidies for senior citizens over 65 year of age.
"If I am elected president, senior citizens who are not receiving any other social security will receive a NT$3,000 monthly allowance beginning July 1," Chen said.
According to demographic statistics, Chen said about 45-50,000 senior citizens would benefit from this policy, which would cost the government nearly NT$18 billion annually.
"Compared with KMT presidential candidate Lien Chan (連戰), who has been writing several billion worth of checks at random, our proposal has struck a balance between social justice and national finance," Chen said.
Chen said the basic subsidy for the elderly is designated to be a transitional stage before the implementation of a national annuity system.
The KMT, however, dismissed Chen's program as "unrealistic."
An official from the Council of Economic Planning and Development said if the government has over NT$20 billion in financial resources, why bother with a "transitional stage'' before implementing the national annuity program.
Meanwhile, in another gesture designed to win voter support, James Soong's (宋楚瑜) running mate Chang Chao-hsiung (張昭雄) advocated diminishing national health insurance fees. Although Chang has been a doctor for several decades, critics doubted the financial feasibility of his proposal.
Hsu Tain-tsair (許添財), a New Nation Alliance legislator and financial expert, said every politician likes to write political checks as a means of pleasing voters during the campaign season but they rarely delivered on their pro-mises.
"Writing empty campaign checks is the traditional approach for candidates when they are courting votes. As politicians, they change their tune depending on who they are speaking to. Voters might be happy to hear the good news without necessarily believing that the promises will be carried out," Hsu said.
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