Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen's call for an "opposition grand alliance" has been branded by the Democratic Progressive Party as a political manoeuvre to deflect attention from problems in her city administration. It is good news for efforts to unify the Blue camp, but it puts pressure on the ruling party.

• Lu Shiow-yen argues that the DPP must not be allowed to dominate as a single party, stressing the need to safeguard democracy, freedom and clean government.
• DPP spokesperson Wu Cheng hit back, saying the Kuomintang already controls the Legislative Yuan and the majority of local resources, and that in Taichung it holds both the city government and the city council.
• Wu said Lu Shiow-yen is rushing to claim the mantle of "leader of the opposition" and is using political rhetoric to paper over her failures in governance.
• The DPP singled out Taichung's poor performance on everyday issues such as refuse, food waste, disease prevention, food safety, the MRT Blue Line and the Taichung Power Plant.
• The appeal comes at a moment when Blue-White cooperation has stalled and the Blue camp's internal unification efforts have lost focus.

Outlook: The course of opposition unification and Blue-White cooperation will become the focus of campaigning in the next phase, and the war of words between the two sides is expected to keep escalating.