It’s Impossible for Tsai Ing-wen to Simply Rely on Oppression to Win Re-Election

 It’s Impossible for Tsai Ing-wen to Simply Rely on Oppression to Win Re-Election

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

February 21, 2019

 Translation of an Excerpt

President Tsai Ing-wen granted an exclusive interview to CNN, announcing that she would seek re-election, and stating "I have confidence to win," continuing to lead the country "in doing more things." Tsai Ing-wen's self-confidence may have her basis; however, examining the poll results, what they say is a completely different story. According to the poll results, Tsai Ing-wen, whether running against Han Kuo-yu and Ko Wen-je, or running against Eric Chu and Ko Wen-je, her support ratings ranked third. This shows that her confidence has a great gap with reality.

Last year end, the DPP’s disastrous electoral defeat was precisely because it suffered the consequences of the poor governance at the central level of the Tsai government, leading to the collapse of the Green camp; it could be called the “revolt” of Taiwan’s public against Tsai Ing-wen. It hasn’t been three full years since Tsai Ing-wen took office, yet she has been jettisoned by the vox populi; subjectively, she wants to continue to remain in office for another four years, leading the country, but will the public continue to tolerate her governance?

President Tsai does not want to know how her governance destroyed people's trust; the Green camp has no willingness either to understand why "hating the DPP" has become the “biggest party in Taiwan.” The reasons are no other, they have always had more ferocious tactics to incite popular hatred and fear, and abuse, to the extreme, the executive power to oppress opponents. For more than one month, people have already witnessed this kind of strategy applied to the right and left, pouring everything from their arsenals.

The Tsai government has launched a series of attacks; besides drawing a red line in advance targeting Han Kuo-yu’s visit to the Mainland to promote the sale of farm produce and seafood, it has been studying how to amend the Statute Governing People’s Relations Across the Strait, extending the ban to 15 years on retired high-level political appointees and generals to visit the Mainland, aiming to restrict Ma Ying-jeou, Wu Den-yih and others to visit the Mainland; at the same time, targeting the advocacy of a "cross-Strait peace agreement," it has planned to set a high bar by amending the law adopting a "duel plebiscite." All these show that the Tsai government has launched "anti-China" and "China-phobia" as its main electoral strategy in order to brew more favorable prospects.

Then look again, the Tsai government utilizes the power of the central government to block and obstruct local governments everywhere, which is also an unimaginable approach. Last year, the DPP used all efforts to attack Ko Wen-je; this year, the Tsai government, however, has turned its guns against Han Kuo-yu. From the President and Premier, as well as spokespersons of the Presidential Office and the Cabinet, have all fired their artillery pieces, blurting out despicable rhetoric unbecoming of their offices. While this central government could not help local governments to promote government affairs, conversely, it blocks and obstructs, takes precautionary measures, and attacks, letting people feel that this government is not only narrow-minded but also irrational. Honestly speaking, the Tsai government’s derailed performance fell below that of Green camp legislators, even miring the prospects of their re-election bids next year in peril.

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