New policies proposed by the Taipei City Government only rebrand existing policies and do not offer anything new, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Ho Meng-hua (何孟樺) said yesterday.
The comments came after Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) on Tuesday announced six short-term economic revitalization plans that his administration would implement during the Taiwan Lantern Festival, which runs through Feb. 19.
Chiang’s plans involve a sales promotion, an expansion of the festival, a program to revitalize shopping districts and markets, a campaign focused on value-added agriculture, boosting tourism and stimulus loans.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
They also involve launching stimulus vouchers at night markets and points programs at designated shops that involve a lottery.
The plans do not amount to a comprehensive strategy, Ho wrote on Facebook yesterday, the first day of the festival, accusing Chiang of trying to deceive Taipei residents.
After the mayor announced the plans, Ho said she contacted the departments involved, but many of them did not know anything about them.
The plans involve at least 11 items that were either implemented last year or are carried out routinely each year, she said.
Chiang’s plan to distribute stimulus vouchers on Dihua Street is based on a plan made by several shopping district promotion associations last year, but his administration claims that it is its own idea, Ho said.
Other measures are insufficient, Ho said, citing a promotion for lantern festival shopping districts with a budget of only NT$120,000 that does not set any goals.
Such plans are ineffective and a waste of funds, she said, calling them worse than plans announced by Chiang’s predecessor, Ko Wen-je (柯文哲).
Taipei Department of Economic Development Director Chen Chun-an (陳俊安) said the Chiang administration’s efforts to revitalize shopping districts is an ongoing project that is under rolling review.
Some of Chiang’s plans are built upon existing measures and add new elements to them, Chen added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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