Newly inaugurated Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday pledged that her party would defend democracy and revive the economy, while opposing the government’s plan to increase defense spending to more than 3 percent of GDP next year.
Cheng made the remarks as she succeeded Eric Chu (朱立倫) in a handover ceremony at the party’s 22nd National Congress in Taipei, attended by KMT officials including Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), Deputy Legislative Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) and Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安).
Cheng said Taiwan faces heightened tensions in the Taiwan Strait and a rapidly changing global economic order.
Photo: RITCHIE B. TONGO, EPA
The Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) long-term rule is eroding Taiwan’s democracy and rule of law, she said, adding that the KMT bears a heavy responsibility to restore order and address the nation’s problems.
Cheng said the party is confident it can demonstrate unprecedented unity and pledged that under her leadership, it would defend democracy and freedom, revive the economy, and pursue long-term cross-strait peace.
The KMT hopes to turn “Taiwan’s worst times into its best” while continuing to reform, grow stronger and attract young talent, she added.
Cheng said she hopes the KMT would not only be Taiwan’s most important and largest political party, but also an organization that serves the public interest, helping vulnerable communities and assisting people in every corner of Taiwan.
Chu urged the party to unite under Cheng’s leadership, saying that only through unity can the party grow stronger and better.
“We only have one KMT and unity is our only path,” Chu said.
In an interview with Agence France-Presse yesterday before the event, Cheng said that Taiwan cannot afford to hike its defense budget to more than 3 percent of GDP.
“The US’ expectations far exceed what we can reasonably afford,” Cheng said.
“Taiwan is not an ATM. We really do not have that much money,” she said.
“We certainly have the determination to defend Taiwan, but it is not a blank check. That is why I said we must have a reasonable defense budget,” she added.
The government has proposed a budget of NT$949.5 billion (US$30.88 billion), or 3.32 percent of GDP, for defense spending next year.
It is also plans to seek up to NT$1 trillion over seven years in special funding to upgrade the nation’s air defense systems, and increase capacity to produce and store ammunition for wartime.
It is unclear how many KMT lawmakers support Cheng’s views, but she insists it is the “vast majority” of the party.
Chu previously said the party supported increasing defense spending to more than 3 percent of GDP, but opposed Taiwan buying US weapons and equipment to resolve its trade deficit.
“If cross-strait relations are peaceful and stable, we do not need a pointless arms race,” Cheng said, adding that dialogue with Beijing was the best option.
The “status quo” between Taiwan and China “cannot remain unchanged forever,” Cheng said, adding that that there would inevitably be a “process of change.”
“What we are working hard for now is to prevent it from escalating into war, but rather toward reconciliation and peace,” she said, adding she is willing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).
Seven of the 17 NT$10 million (US$311,604) winning receipts from the November-December uniform invoice lottery remain unclaimed as of today, the Ministry of Finance said, urging winners to redeem their prizes by May 5. The reminder comes ahead of the release of the winning numbers for the January-February lottery tomorrow. Among the unclaimed receipts was one for a NT$173 phone bill in Keelung, while others were for a NT$5,913 purchase at Costco in Taipei's Neihu District (內湖), a NT$49 purchase at a FamilyMart in New Taipei City's Tamsui District (淡水), and a NT$500 purchase at a tea shop in New Taipei City's
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
TALENT SCOUTING: The university is investing substantial funds in its future to bring in the kind of researchers that would keep the college internationally competitive National Taiwan University (NTU) plans to invest NT$2 billion (US$62.6 million) to launch two programs aimed at attracting and retaining top research talent, university president Chen Wen-chang (陳文章) said yesterday. The funding would support the “Palm Grove Scholars Project,” which targets academics aged 40 to 55. Up to 20 scholars would be selected, each receiving as much as NT$10 million annually, Chen said. The initiative is designed to attract leading researchers to Taiwan and strengthen NTU’s global competitiveness by fostering a more research-friendly environment and expanding international collaboration, he said. NTU is also introducing a “Hong Hu” chair grant, which would provide Palm
RSS