President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) yesterday sparred over who better understands the needs of young voters.
At a discussion with students in Taipei on Saturday, Gou, who on April 17 announced that he would participate in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential primary, said that he wants to give young people a future, adding that he knows what young people want better than Tsai.
Tsai drove to school when she studied law at National Taiwan University, while he made deliveries on his motorcycle during college, Gou said.
Photo: Huang Shu-li, Taipei Times
Tsai yesterday called Gou’s argument unpersuasive given that he is the richest person in Taiwan.
“Gou should think about why so many young people in his company take their own lives,” she said.
Touting her administration’s policies that benefit young people, Tsai said over the past three years the government has raised the minimum wage three times and lowered taxes for young people.
She also listed other measures such as social housing, long-term care, and infant and childcare.
Gou might be good at managing a business, but she is more skilled at taking care of the public, Tsai said.
Tsai and former premier William Lai (賴清德) are seeking the Democratic Progressive Party’s nomination as its candidate for next year’s presidential election.
Gou later yesterday responded to Tsai’s comments by asking whether people believed Tsai’s statement that she is more skilled at taking care of the public.
If elected, he would launch a multibillion-US dollar venture capital fund to support young people’s creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship, and turn Taiwan into a nation of technological innovation, Gou said during a visit to Yunlin County.
As for Tsai’s remarks about Hon Hai workers who had committed suicide, Gou said she should offer her opinions about government policy instead of using the deceased as a campaign topic.
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