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发帖数: 698 | 1 2012年11月16日15:56
http://www.appledaily.com.tw/realtimenews/article/international
知名國際期刊《經濟學人》(The Economist)網站，今天(17日)出現一篇分類在「台灣
政治」(Taiwan Politics)下的文章，標題大大寫著：「Ma the bumbler」(笨蛋馬英九
)。這篇文章迅速在各大社群、《批踢踢實業坊》等網站被轉載，網友對於《經濟學人
》將我們的總統這樣入標，紛紛表示：「完了，國際認證了」。
文章一開始寫道，當馬英九2008年第一次選上總統，他讓台灣人對於經濟上能開啟新局
，有著很高的期待。他與中國簽訂了劃時代的協定，企圖協助台灣經濟邊緣化的問題。
當時，馬英九的形象，是個廉潔的技術官僚，有能力終止國民黨內的裙帶關係與內鬥，
與他的對手、目前已經因貪污罪被關4年的前總統陳水扁成為一個鮮明的對比。但是5年
下來，經過了10個月前的成功連任，很多事情改變了，最明顯的就是馬英九的普遍滿意
度暴跌，已經來到歷史新低的13%(根據TVBS民調中心)。這個國家似乎已經出現了共識
：馬英九是個「無能的笨蛋」(ineffectual bumbler)。
文中以大部分的篇幅，分析台灣最近的經濟局勢，引用許多數據，並分析對中國開放後
對台灣本土經濟造成的衝擊，同時也舉林益世案為例，說明馬英九的清廉形象受到嚴重
打擊。最後強調，雖然下次大選仍在4年之外，可能的參選人們暫時還沒有出手攻擊馬
英九的跡象，但隨時可能發生。畢竟，沒有人希望為了台灣目前的經濟問題背負責任，
目前沒有任何跡象顯示，馬英九的政策會有所改變與修正，但人民對他的信任度，正在
與日遽減。
Ma the bumbler
A former heart-throb loses his shine
http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21566657-former-heart-throb-
Nov 17th 2012 | TAIPEI | from the print edition
WHEN he was first elected in 2008, Taiwan’s president, Ma Ying-jeou,
offered Taiwanese high hopes that the island’s economy would open a new
chapter. He promised ground-breaking agreements with China to help end
Taiwan’s growing economic marginalisation. At the time, Mr Ma’s image was
of a clean technocrat able to rise above the cronyism and infighting of his
party, the Kuomintang (KMT). He was a welcome contrast to his fiery and pro-
independence predecessor, Chen Shui-bian, now in jail for corruption.
Five years on, and despite being handily re-elected ten months ago, much has
changed. In particular, popular satisfaction with Mr Ma has plummeted, to a
record low of 13%, according to the TVBS Poll Centre. The country appears
to agree on one thing: Mr Ma is an ineffectual bumbler.
Ordinary people do not find their livelihoods improving. Salaries have
stagnated for a decade. The most visible impact of more open ties with China
, which include a free-trade agreement, has been property speculation in
anticipation of a flood of mainland money. Housing in former working-class
areas on the edge of Taipei, the capital, now costs up to 40 times the
average annual wage of $15,400. The number of families below the poverty
line has leapt. Labour activists have taken to pelting the presidential
office with eggs.
Exports account for 70% of GDP. So some of Taiwan’s problems are down to
the dismal state of rich-world economies. Yet Mr Ma’s leadership is also to
blame. He has failed to paint a more hopeful future, with sometimes hard
measures needed now. Worse, he frequently tweaks policies in response to
opposition or media criticism. It suggests indecisiveness.
Public anger first arose in June, when Mr Ma raised the price of government-
subsidised electricity. Few Taiwanese understood why, even though Taiwan’s
state-owned power company loses billions. In the face of public outrage, Mr
Ma postponed a second round of electricity price rises scheduled for
December. They will now take place later next year.
People are also worried that a national pension scheme is on course for
bankruptcy in less than two decades. Yet Mr Ma cannot bring himself to raise
premiums sharply, because of the temporary unpopularity it risks. When Mr
Ma does try to appeal to Taiwanese who make up the island’s broad political
centre, it often backfires with his party’s core supporters. Following
public grumbles that retired civil servants, teachers and ex-servicemen were
a privileged group, the cabinet announced plans to cut more than $300m in
year-end bonuses, affecting around 381,000. The trouble was, veterans are
among the KMT’s most fervent backers. Now some threaten to take to the
streets in protest and deprive the KMT of their votes until the plan is
scrapped. Meanwhile, Mr Ma’s clean image has been sullied by the indictment
of the cabinet secretary-general for graft.
Cracks are starting to grow in the KMT façade. Recently Sean Lien, a
prominent politician, criticised Mr Ma’s economic policies, saying that any
politician in office during this time of sluggish growth was at best a “
master of a beggar clan”—implying a country of paupers.
But the next election is four years away, and presidential hopefuls will not
try to oust or even outshine Mr Ma anytime soon. After all, they will not
want to take responsibility for the country’s economic problems. Nothing
suggests Mr Ma’s main policies will change (or that they should), but his
credibility is draining by the day. |
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