The three candidates for the Jan. 14 presidential election yesterday evening outlined their policy platforms in the first of the three televised presentations hosted by the Central Election Commission (CEC).
The presentation was held between 8pm and 9:40pm at the Chinese Television System and each candidate was given three 10-minute slots to make their presentations.
In reference to comments by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Thursday that Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) does not wish to embrace the so-called “1992 consensus” because she did not recognize the Republic of China (ROC), Tsai said in her presentation that “Taiwan is the ROC and the ROC is Taiwan.”
Photo: Chen Wei-min, Taipei Times
She add that if Ma succeeded in his re-election bid, “our generation would very possibly face the question of ultimate unification.”
Tsai elaborated that the ROC she referred to is the island of Taiwan and its outlying islands, which is different from the ROC Ma was talking about, which included all of China’s territory.
“No matter whether [its the name] of Taiwan or ROC, it is the land that the people of Taiwan have fought for and the place where 23 million Taiwanese have lived for generations,” Tsai said.
On economic policy, Tsai criticized Ma by saying that his administration had only two approaches when dealing with economic policies.
The first was to open up to China and use its market as a panacea for all economic woes, which led to the signing of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), Tsai said, and the second was to raise debt and spend more money.
It is not difficult to have an efficient and responsible government, the key principles being that the leader can grasp the meaning of the policies and force the governmental machine to become “well-oiled” and not become too proud, Tsai said, adding that Ma hadn’t achieve the two principles in the nearly four years he has been president.
“The people have waited and suffered for four years and now they can’t wait any longer,” Tsai said.
Meanwhile, Ma said his administration had given the people of Taiwan a sense of security and that his presidency would be the safest choice for Taiwanese.
Stating that giving people a sense of security was the most basic responsibility of being a president, Ma added that the big difference between his administration and that of the DPP was the difference between who can truly safeguard Taiwan’s sovereignty and safety.
“We walked out of the shadows the DPP couldn’t get out of,” Ma said, adding that the DPP’s refusal to recognize the “1992 consensus” would only push cross-strait relations into uncertainty, and it was difficult to calculate what the impacts would be.
People First Party Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) said long-term governing by the DPP and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has tired people with their bickering.
On the cross-strait policy issues, Soong said Tsai continuously talked about the “Taiwan consensus,” but what if the DPP did not abide by the ROC’s Constitution?
“Is the Taiwanese identity higher than that of the ROC Constitution? What else should we do?” Soong asked
Not only is Taiwan’s military and society struggling, but the country’s is unsafe and there is also the social insecurity arising from the growing wealth gap, Soong said, adding that the more serious problem lies in how to revitalize the economy.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS