Chen Shui-bian is not qualified to criticize the "cross-strait common market" and "developing Taiwan into a free trade zone" policies raised by his running mate Vincent Siew, because Chen has failed to review his fallacies in economic policies over the past seven years. Ma said he and his running mate have vowed to save Taiwan's economy, and the "cross-strait common market" and the free trade zone concepts are designed to revive the domestic economy and prevent Taiwan from being marginalized economically in the near future.
Ma made the remarks in response to the fact that President Chen openly criticized the "cross-strait common market," saying it would mark the beginning of disaster as Taiwan would be economically swallowed up by China.
Chen, when visiting Inotera Memories Inc. yesterday, said that the political implications of a "cross-strait common market" would be a "one China market," packaging "one China" in "one market."
The president stressed that the "cross-strait common market" would mean the free flow of personnel, products and capital between Taiwan and China, and would lead to massive losses of jobs, decreased wages of workers, serious threats to farmers' livelihoods, and the acceleration of the hollowing out of industries.
In response, Ma said that Chen's criticism of Siew's economic blueprints is nothing but a form of slander.
Stressing that he will be counting on Siew as the chief architect of economic reform if elected president, Ma said that he and Siew are determined to save the sagging Taiwan economy by implementing effective economic and trade policies.
Over the past seven years, Taiwan's economy has been on the decline, but President Chen hasn't moved to improve his economic policies, and has instead utilized precious national resources to attack the opposition camp. "I think this is not the exact thing that a national leader should do," Ma said.
"It's nonsense for Chen to say that a 'cross-strait common market' is a one China market that packages 'one China' in 'one market,'" Ma lamented.
"We have been against 'one China, two systems' and against Beijing's peaceful reunification scheme. And we have never said that mainland Chinese laborers and agricultural products would be allowed into Taiwan," Ma continued.
Ma said that he wondered why Chen used to consult Siew as his top economic adviser, but has now begun to criticize Siew's economic policies. "Why is the President Chen of the past is different from the President Chen of the present?" Ma asked.
Meanwhile, KMT's spokesman Su Chun-bin said that the two major economic policies outlined by Siew are available with a well-rounded framework and concrete implementation timetable, and therefore can hardly be vetoed by Chen's criticisms. Su urged the DPP government to come up with effective economy-revitalization measures as soon as possible, instead of making meaningless criticisms.
Lawmakers of the pan-blue camp also noted that Chen's criticism on the "common market" proposal was simply a repeat of his old trick of accusing opponents of being collaborators of the communists.
