Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Johnny Chiang, together with four KMT elected officials: Nantou County Executive Lin Ming-chen, Hualien County Executive Hsu Chen-wei, Yunlin County Executive Chang Li-shan, and Taitung County Executive Yao Ching-ling, jointly released an open letter to President Tsai Ing-wen this morning (July 2nd). In this open letter, they emphasized that “saving the people is like fighting a fire; saving the people cannot wait!” In this way, they called upon President Tsai to authorize, by way of special project, procurement of vaccines by local governments according to the methods used by the Yonglin Foundation, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, and the Tzu Chi Foundation. This open letter also emphasized that if the central government and local governments can work together to strive for vaccines, expedite and expand the scope of vaccinations, improve the vaccination rate of our country, and promptly achieve the objective of herd immunity, then we would truly be a paragon of democracy.

The open letter reads as follows:

Your Excellency Madam President Tsai Ing-wen:

COVID-19 has wrought havoc. As of yesterday, there are already 14,853 total confirmed cases and 661 deaths from the virus. Enforcement of the reduction of the people’s activities and under the great efforts of the entire population to jointly fight the pandemic, the pandemic situation has abated. However, if we consult the experiences of other countries, with an insufficiency of vaccinations, before attaining the goal of herd immunity, there remains an underlying concern that the pandemic situation will intensify repeatedly.

Widespread vaccination remains the final way to resolve the pandemic situation. We are glad to see that your Excellency Madam President recently, by way of special project applications, authorized the Yonglin Foundation, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), and the Tzu Chi Foundation to procure vaccines from abroad, uniting the public and private sectors, actively striving for sufficient, effective, and internationally verified COVID-19 vaccines for our compatriots, as the people have been looking forward to.

Since the public and private sectors can unite, local governments and the central government should be even more able to work together.

The Nantou County government, Hualien County government, Yunlin County government, and Taitung County government have all complied with the Central Epidemic Command Center’s published application procedures and thus applied to the Food and Drug Administration for vaccine procurement according to the methods used by the Yonglin Foundation and other non-governmental organizations and firms. However, they have yet to receive a relevant reply. This causes us great concern.

Saving the people is like fighting a fire; saving the people cannot wait!

While other countries are already beginning to plan a period of vaccination, we still can’t even expect a timetable for the arrival of comprehensive first-round vaccinations. This is truly concerning.

Local governments are currently willing to expend a small amount of effort, doing what they can, to increase the quantity of vaccines purchased. They remain hopeful that Madam President can, according to the methods used by the Yonglin Foundation, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, and Tzu Chi Foundation, by way of special project, authorize local governments to procure vaccines. If the central government and local governments can work together to strive for vaccines, expedite and expand the scope of vaccinations, improve the vaccination rate of our country, and promptly achieve the objective of herd immunity, then we would truly be a paragon of democracy.

Pandemic prevention does not distinguish between political parties; the central government and local governments are even more so staunch allies. For the sake of the common people in these counties, we beseech Madam President to agree to our request. We are more than willing to travel to the Presidential Palace to explain our primary intentions for vaccine procurement. We hope that Madam President will think of the common people, prioritize the interests of the nation and people, approve our request as quickly as possible, and fight the devastation of the COVID-19 virus together with us.

Respectfully,

Johnny Chiang, Lin Ming-chen, Hsu Chen-wei, Chang Li-shan, Yao Ching-ling

July 2nd, 2021