Opposition parties yesterday criticized the policies of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) ahead of a speech she has planned for this morning to mark seven years in office, while the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) separately defended her record.
The Tsai administration has established 30 “national teams” and 10 “special project offices,” but has had little to offer in terms of policy implementation and actual governance, Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Chiu Chen-yuan (邱臣遠) told a news conference in Taipei.
The appointment of people who lack professional knowledge to task forces is a sign of politics superseding professionalism, Chiu said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
The DPP must face internal administration and foreign diplomacy challenges instead of attempting to rule by sloganeering, he said, urging the administration to focus on traffic safety, economic growth, helping industry and improving diplomacy.
New Power Party (NPP) Chairwoman Claire Wang (王婉諭) said that while the Tsai administration should be commended for upholding the nation’s autonomy and performing well on the diplomatic front, its double standards on government corruption have been a failure.
Honesty and public integrity are the least the public can expect from politicians, Wang said, adding that the DPP, as the majority party in the legislature, must take full responsibility for government failures.
The only way to ensure government oversight would be to deny the DPP and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative majorities, she said.
Taiwan Statebuilding Party Chairman Wang Hsing-huan (王興煥) said that the Tsai administration performed well regarding COVID-19 prevention, but its social reforms were lackluster, while its national defense platforms were outright failures.
Tsai’s performance over the past seven years has been a letdown for the younger generation that voted for her, KMT Legislator Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) said, citing polls from the Foundation for the People. Chiang is chairman of the foundation.
Despite being elected on promises to make Taiwan a better place for young people, Tsai received an average of 4.03 out of 10 among respondents under 40 years old, Chiang said.
The poll was conducted on Facebook from Monday to Wednesday targeting people aged 20 or older. It garnered 1,200 valid responses and claimed a margin of error of 2.83 percentage points and a confidence level of 95 percent.
Tsai is to give a speech at 9am today focusing on thanking people for their support and the Cabinet for its hard work, and affirming that the government’s efforts over the past seven years have redefined Taiwan and allowed the international community to see the nation in a new light, the Presidential Office said.
The speech would also touch on Taiwan’s pivotal role in the global supply chain and its critical location in the region’s geopolitics, it said.
At a separate news conference, DPP legislators touted the administration’s work.
The Tsai administration oversaw multiple hikes of the minimum wage, increased the tax waiving threshold for unmarried people to NT$416,000 (US$13,559) from NT$303,000 and increased rental subsidies to NT$300 billion last year from NT$2 billion in 2016, DPP Legislator Liu Shih-fang (劉世芳) said.
DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said that the nation’s defense industry has improved greatly under Tsai and that the national defense budget comprised 2 percent of GDP.
The level of international support for Taiwan is unprecedented and one of the reasons for this achievement is the success of the government’s policies, DPP Legislator Lo Chi-cheng (羅致政) said.
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
Carrefour Taiwan is to begin using a new name from the start of July, but it cannot divulge the name until then, the chairman of the supermarket chain's parent company said today. President Chain Store Co chairman Lo Chih-hsien (羅智先) was asked by reporters after a shareholders' meeting to confirm whether the company has settled on a new name for the supermarket brand. In March, the government-registered name of two Carrefour Taiwan branches was quietly changed to "Le Chia Kang" (樂家康) in Chinese, raising speculation that has been selected as the name. Lo said that because of local regulations and contractual obligations, the
The Philippines would likely be involved in any conflict over Taiwan due to its proximity to the democracy claimed by China, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said, reiterating a stance that risks angering Beijing. “In the Philippines, we do not have a choice because Taiwan is so close to the Philippines and we have almost 200,000 Filipino nationals living and working in Taiwan,” Marcos said in an interview with Japanese media in Manila on Monday. The Philippine leader’s comments come ahead of a state visit to Japan next week, where he is to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to discuss security
RSS