Students turn up heat on 2016 ROC presidential candidates

2015/12/08

A student-organized forum involving candidates from Taiwan’s major political parties contesting the 2016 ROC presidential election took place Dec. 6 in Taipei City.

Staged at National Taiwan University, the first-time event saw Eric Chu of the ruling Kuomintang, James Soong of the People First Party and Chen Chien-jen, running mate of opposition Democratic Progressive Party’s absent Tsai Ing-wen, field questions on key youth policy issues from 2,500 students representing 40-plus colleges and universities around the country.

Chu, who pledged his commitment to enhancing opportunities for students at every level, said promoting education is the first and foremost goal of tertiary institutions. “The government must ensure every student gets an equal share of resources while encouraging the development of advanced academic research.”

Echoing Chu’s remarks, Soong said the government should help keep rising college tuition costs in check. On the emotive subject of youth housing woes, he vowed to seek balanced national development so as to reduce population demands in northern Taiwan.

“By adopting an evenly distributed approach to regional industrial growth, the government can assist in averting housing pressure in metropolitan areas and reeling in rising property prices over the last few years.”

Supporting Soong’s position, Chen said the social housing policy of the DPP is an essential plank in its electoral platform. “We plan to release 200,000 housing units via government involvement in managing private property rentals. A transparent housing regulations framework will advance this cause as well as result in more public housing projects.”

According to Chen, the DPP also places great importance on overhauling Taiwan’s national pension program and ensuring a fair deal for all. “This reform will be carried out in phases to reduce its impact on society,” he said.

The forum was co-hosted by the student bodies of seven tertiary institutions: Hsinchu City-based National Tsing Hua University; Tainan City-based National Cheng Kung University; Taipei City-based NTU, National Chengchi University, National Yang-Ming University and Soochow University; and Taoyuan City-based National Central University.

Central Election Commission statistics reveal that 1.29 million first-time voters are expected to take part in the Jan. 16, 2016, ROC presidential and legislative elections, up 100,000 from the previous contest in 2012. Accounting for 6.8 percent of total voters, the demographic is seen as playing a crucial role in deciding Taiwan’s next national leader.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=239885&ctNode=2194&mp=9)