Lai: Build a solid foundation to build a city on a hill. Double Ten speech, pushing for salary increases and tax cuts to make the Chinese people live a better life.

President Lai Ching-te delivered a National Day speech yesterday titled "Taiwan, a city on a hill, salt of the earth, light of the world." He emphasized that a city on a mountain is built on the mountains that protect the country. It should not only have a dazzling skyline, but also have a solid foundation; pragmatic governance should be used to promote salary increases, tax cuts, welfare benefits, and burden reduction, so that everyone in this country can stand firm and live well.

National unity to safeguard peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific

This year’s National Day Convention was held in the square in front of the Presidential Palace, with planned preludes, National Day ceremonies and themed performances. Highlights included a Chinook helicopter hoisting a huge national flag in the sky, a Black Hawk helicopter simulating a rescue operation at low altitude, and a parade of military and police aircraft, special service armored vehicles and more than 2,500 disaster prevention personnel on the ground, demonstrating the strength of national defense and the resilience of the entire society. At the end, the Thunder Tigers of the Air Force flew over the field with red, white and blue smoke, and the finale shocked the city.

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Former President Chen Shui-bian, former Vice President Annette Lu, and Chen Jianren sat next to each other. People's Party Chairman Huang Guochang, People First Party Chairman James Soong, and Times Power Party Chairman Ong Wanyu were all present. More than 1,400 foreign guests, including King Enshwati III and Princess Zuma of the Kingdom of Eswatini, also congratulated President Lai and his wife and Vice President Xiao Meiqin at the Presidential Palace.

President Lai said, in an era of war, authoritarian expansion, and rapid changes in the global order, what kind of country should Taiwan become? His answer is to build a "city on a mountain" bravely and confidently; the city on the mountain must be impregnable and the people must be united as one, which is the key force to maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

Life is the foundation to create a better future

He bluntly said that the foundation of Taiwan is the lives of its people. Whether a country is progressing cannot only depend on output value and exports, but also whether labor benefits have improved, whether family burdens have been reduced, whether elders are taken care of, and whether young people believe that hard work can create a better future.

President Lai said that although salt is tiny, it can harmonize various flavors, preserve food and preserve it fresh. Taiwan is a small country, but it protects democracy, freedom, human rights, and the rule of law, and does not allow authority to erode precious universal values. It does not seek hegemony, nor does it seek to dominate others. Taiwan's light comes from the wisdom and diligence of its people, its industrial innovation, and its willingness to share its achievements with the world. It must cross national borders and let more people in need feel warmth and hope.