Compiled by YIMIE YONG, CLARISSA CHUNG and R. ARAVINTHAN

AT the halfway mark of a four-year term, Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen’s approval rating has plunged to below 50%, Sin Chew Daily reported.

In an interview in response to the results based on surveys by several Taiwanese media companies, Tsai said it is something common as she is in the midst of reforming Taiwan.

She vowed to continue as long as the reforms benefit Taiwan.

According to a poll conducted by the newspaper United Daily News, Tsai’s approval rating fell to 29% compared to 30% last year.

A survey by Apple Daily showed that only 24% of the respondents approved of her performance while 62% said they were not satisfied with it.

Tsai, who was sworn in on May 20, 2016, is the first woman to be elected to the highest office in Taiwan.

> Taiwanese pop singer-songwriter Jay Chou has been urged to continue working with the award-winning lyricist Vincent Fang, Sin Chew Daily reported.

Fans of the Mandopop king made the call after his recent release of a new song whose lyrics he co-wrote with another singer, Devon Song.

Fans complained that its lyrics were old-fashioned and left thousands of comments all over social media urging Fang to collaborate with Chou.

The duo have produced many hit songs over the years.

Fang, a multiple nominee of the prominent Golden Melody Awards, won best lyricist at the 19th edition for Chou’s hit Blue and White Porcelain.

The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.

