The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday criticized the Yu Shyi-kun Cabinet as "broken down," pointing to what it called the nation's dismal economic state as proof of its failure.
Speaking on the day of the Cabinet's customary resignation, the KMT also expressed little optimism for the next Cabinet during a press conference.
"Over the past three years, the Yu Cabinet has constantly challenged opposition parties and created instability in the political arena," KMT spokesman Chang Jung-kung (
Chang said the nation only saw an average 4.2 percent growth in GDP per year, while over the three years prior to the transfer of power in 2000, the KMT government saw an average 5.3 percent growth.
Chang cited this difference as evidence that Yu's administration had "flunked." He added that this figure ranked behind those of the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia.
Part of the reason for the Cabinet's failure, Chang said, was President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) insistence on forming a "minority administration."
"In 2000, Chen had the excuse of just being elected when forming his `minority administration.' Three years ago, he had another excuse, because the pan-green camp saw an increase in legislative seats after the [2001] legislative elections. Now, in the face of fresh public opinion, as reflected in the pan-blue majority in the legislature, Chen has no more excuses," Chang said.
The KMT has urged Chen to nominate a pan-blue candidate for the next premier and allow him or her to assemble a Cabinet of their choice.
Chang and KMT caucus whip Huang Teh-fu (黃德福) also mocked Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight and Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷).
They said that, in selecting Hsieh as the next premier, Chen showed that his words on negotiating with opposition parties about the composition of the Cabinet were empty.
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
Snow fell in the mountainous areas of northern, central and eastern Taiwan in the early hours of yesterday, as cold air currents moved south. In the northern municipality of Taoyuan, snow started falling at about 6am in Fusing District (復興), district head Su Tso-hsi (蘇佐璽) said. By 10am, Lalashan National Forest Recreation Area, as well as Hualing (華陵), Sanguang (三光) and Gaoyi (高義) boroughs had seen snowfall, Su said. In central Taiwan, Shei-Pa National Park in Miaoli County and Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area in Nantou County saw snowfall of 5cm and 6cm respectively, by 10am, staff at the parks said. It began snowing
The 2025 Kaohsiung Wonderland–Winter Amusement Park event has teamed up with the Japanese manga series Chiikawa this year for its opening at Love River Bay yesterday, attracting more than 10,000 visitors, the city government said. Following the success of the “2024 Kaohsiung Wonderland” collaboration with a giant inflatable yellow duck installation designed by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, this year the Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau collaborated with Chiikawa by Japanese illustrator Nagano to present two giant inflatable characters. Two inflatable floats — the main character, Chiikwa, a white bear-like creature with round ears, and Hachiware, a white cat with a blue-tipped tail
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