In most Western countries that adopt the British system of government, the legislative and executive branches are always controlled by the ruling party. The head of government is the leader of the party that wins parliamentary elections. The DPP’s argument about balance of power just doesn’t hold water. When people cast their vote, their major concern is to elect a government that works and delivers, that makes their lives easier and better. Those candidates who failed the voters’ expectations will be punished at the polls. In Canada’s 1993 federal elections, for instance, the ruling Tories headed by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney won only two seats in the 295-member House of Commons. Voters were ruthless when they settled scores with politicians at the polls. Taiwan’s Jan. 12 legislative election was also an example.

Looking at Taiwan’s history over the past six decade, its heydays were in the 70s and 80s, and the early 90s, when the KMT was the single dominating party whose lawmakers worked in tandem with the executive branch to facilitate Taiwan’s economic development and infrastructural buildup. In these good old days, the economy grew at an explosive speed, averaging 10 percent per annum, making the erstwhile economic backwater and economic showcase and the envy of the developing world.

So, what’s wrong with yidang duda? Nothing, as far as the KMT is concerned. It is a boon for the country, not a bane. Now, on the eve of the election, many voters are poised to give the KMT a new mandate — to make Taiwan great again by reviving its sputtering economy giving the 23 million people a new hope for a better life. No wonder the DPP, and Hsieh in particular, is nervous and desperate. They know their days are numbered and must launch an all-out attack on yidang duda, hoping to garner some votes with a fallacious, misleading message.

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