Most Taiwanese are upset about the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration’s cross-strait and economic performance, a survey published yesterday showed.
The poll, which focused on public perception of the DPP and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), was commissioned by the Taiwan Competitiveness Forum, whose members include former People First Party legislator Pang Chien-kuo (龐建國) and KMT member Hsieh Ming-hui (謝明輝).
More than half of respondents said that the DPP administration does worse than the KMT government when it comes to foreign relations, and 61.7 percent said that cross-strait relations have deteriorated since the DPP assumed power, the survey showed.
As for the economy, 48.8 percent said that it has worsened, while 33.7 percent said that there is little difference between the DPP’s and the KMT’s performance.
Without endorsing the so-called “1992 consensus” and the concept that people from both sides of the Taiwan Strait are “one family,” President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) would not be able to improve the nation’s foreign relations and economic development, Pang said.
The “1992 consensus”— a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party that both sides acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Public dissatisfaction with Tsai’s performance reached 64.1 percent, increasing by 3.8 percentage points from a February poll, while dissatisfaction with Premier William Lai’s (賴清德) performance rose 6.4 points to 47.5 percent, Hsieh said.
While Tsai has encouraged government officials to show humility, nearly 40 percent of respondents said that the ruling party has not demonstrated more tolerance for social dissent than the KMT, Hsieh added.
Asked which party they supported, 23.1 percent said the KMT and 14.6 percent chose the DPP, while more than half of respondents had no preference, he said.
The KMT appears to be gaining territory ahead of the Nov. 24 local elections, Hsieh added.
The survey, conducted from July 22 to July 24 by Taiwan Real Survey Co, collected 1,083 valid samples via telephone interviews and had a margin of error of 2.98 percentage points.
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday appealed to the authorities to release former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) from pretrial detention amid conflicting reports about his health. The TPP at a news conference on Thursday said that Ko should be released to a hospital for treatment, adding that he has blood in his urine and had spells of pain and nausea followed by vomiting over the past three months. Hsieh Yen-yau (謝炎堯), a retired professor of internal medicine and Ko’s former teacher, said that Ko’s symptoms aligned with gallstones, kidney inflammation and potentially dangerous heart conditions. Ko, charged with
RSS