TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan People's Party (TPP) presidential candidate Ko Wen-je criticized Chen Chi-chung, the former Minister of Agriculture, on Sunday (Oct. 29) for what he contends are agricultural policies that have failed to create structural changes.
Just a day earlier, during his visit to Tainan, Ko asked farmers which former agriculture chief had been the most successful. Some farmers answered that Chen had outperformed others.
Speaking during the opening tea ceremony at legislator Chang Chi-lu's campaign office, Ko expressed his disagreement with the farmers' view.
Ko criticized the subsidy policy under Chen's guidance, singling out the funding allocations for eggs and pork, which he said have not transformed Taiwan's pig and poultry industries. Ko even likened the subsidy policy to "taking steroids every day."
In response to Ko's criticism, Chen defended his work at the Ministry of Agriculture and emphasized the importance for all presidential candidates to support the nation's critical policies to enable the country to move forward.
