The following is a brief roundup of selected local newspaper editorials Thursday: Liberty Times: Chinese capital flowing into Taiwan, thanks to President Ma Hong Kong-based China Strategic Holdings, which won the bid to acquire Taiwan's Nan Shan Life Insurance, decided to buy NT$20.8 billion worth of equity in Taiwan's ChinaTrust group, which in turn would buy a one-third stake in Nan Shan with the hope that this move would quell public opposition to the Hong Kong company's acquisition of Nan Shan. But this is a case of China Strategic killing two birds with one stone as will obtain stakes in both Nan Shan and China Trust and thereby gain a foothold in Taiwan. China Strategic is a listed company in Hong Kong, but many financial analysts claim that its capital originates in China. The company's decision to share its ownership of Nan Shan with ChinaTrust underlines its determination to venture into the Taiwan market. Since Hong Kong is a territory of China, we can consider Hong Kong capital as Chinese capital in a broad sense. Chinese capital in overseas markets is usually either from Chinese authorities or from corrupt funds, that is why we are opposed to its entry into Taiwan. Now that Taiwan has signed a memorandum of understanding with China on financial supervisory cooperation and is anticipating a cross-strait economic cooperation framework agreement, we can expect more Chinese investment in Taiwan. These funds will not be invested in local industry, but rather will be used to speculate on the financial, stock and real estate markets to seek quick profits, to the detriment of the local economy. President Ma's administration is not only numb to this dangerous trend, but is also abetting it. This government should be condemned by the public. Apple Daily: KMT candidates fighting uphill battle as Ma's charisma fades As the year-end magistrate elections approach, the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is expected to win one or two seats more than they did last time. If that happens, it would boost the party's chances of winning the 2012 presidential election. A recent survey shows that Ma's approval rating is lower than that of DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen, although the KMT still has a higher approval rating than the DPP. That is why some KMT candidates are distancing themselves from Ma, as DPP candidates did during former President Chen Shui-bian's last days in office. Ma's administration is stumbling from crisis to another. Four KMT lawmakers have been stripped of their seats because of election-fixing, several members of the KMT Central Standing Committee were found to have bought votes, Premier Wu Den-yih is associating with a gang boss, one of Ma's stalwart supporters is engaged in an extramarital affair... With the election only 16 days away, we doubt that the voters will forget these scandals that have tarnished Ma and his party. China Times: Examining the comunique between Hu Jintao and Barack Obama The comunique issued by Chinese leader Hu Jintao and U.S. President Barack Obama in Beijing sends three messages to Taiwan: First, Washington respects the core elements of China's principle which alludes to Tibet and Taiwan are parts of its territory. Second, there was no mention of Taiwan's security in the comunique, which is an alert for Taiwan. Third, Washington looks forward to more dialogue and interaction between China and Taiwan in the areas of economics and politics. The comunique will undoubtedly encourage Beijing to press Taiwan into bilateral political talks. Therefore, we urge the Taiwan government to express its disapproval of Washington's agreement with Beijing's policy and to deal with China's political approach. United Daily News: Missed opportunities to prevent child's death from abuse A four-year old girl has died as result of abuse by her single mother and six other adults in the home. The 21-year-old mother was forced to leave her family and school four years ago after she became pregnant and it was found that the father of the baby was three years younger than her. She moved in with her boyfriend and his parents at the time, but after a quarrel with him, she went to live with her cousins. If the single mother had not been rejected by her parents, she would not have had to leave her family and may have completed her schooling. Also, if her boyfriend's parents had extended a hand to her, she may not have abused her child. In addition, if the government's welfare system had provided her and her child with shelter, things might have gone differently. Last of all, had the police intervened when they were alerted to the plight of the child a couple of days before her death, the tragedy could have been averted. We hope the child's death would prompt the society and the government to close these loopholes in our social welfare system so as to prevent other such tragedies. 