The results of yesterday's Yunlin County commissioner by-election appeared to surprise no-one, as independent candidate Chang Jung-wei (張榮味) walked away with a victory -- albeit by a narrow margin.
While Chang singled out president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) for praise -- despite being an independent candidate -- the DPP predicted the victory would give organized crime leaders encouragement to become increasingly involved in future elections in Taiwan.
The victory appeared to be a vindication for Chang Jung-wei, who lost out in the 1997 commissioner election to the KMT's Su Wen-hsiung (
PHOTO: CHEN CHENG-CHANG, TAIPEI TIMES
On the face of it, the defeat was humiliating for the KMT, which sent down its top brass to campaign on behalf of its candidate. Accordingly, John Chang, the party's secretary-general, announced he was prepared to tender his resignation.
After receiving news of the defeat last night, Chang visited President Lee, the party chairman, at his residence to offer his resignation.
Lee, however, rejected the offer. A statement released from the KMT spokesman's office quoted the president as saying the Yunlin by-election was local in nature, and that there "were many related influences" in the result.
The statement added Lee had urged Chang to stay on, and hoped he would "take a rest for a couple of days."
Meanwhile, the independent candidate was raising a few eyebrows down in Yunlin by singling Lee out for appreciation and praise, especially for his "promotion of democracy."
Confirming the victory around 6pm last night -- two hours after ballot-counting began -- Chang Jung-wei vowed that he would cash in all his so-called "platform checks," or campaign promises, to build up Yunlin County during his two-year period in the commissioner's post.
Speaking amid cheers and applause from supporters, with his daughter and wife present at his headquarters in Touliu, Chang was quick to credit the chairman of his former party.
"We are preparing to give Yunlin residents their dignity back. And I have to thank President Lee, because the president carried out democratic reforms and therefore gave me the opportunity to campaign in this election," he said.
Chang's spokesman, Kao Meng-ting (
At the same time, down the street about 600 meters away, DPP candidate Lin Chung-li led his campaign's staff members in a deep bow to supporters.
Bringing up the issue of vote-buying, which he had continually warned against throughout the campaign, Lin said he worried about the future of Yunlin, where the problem of gangster involvement and "money politics" would only worsen.
"Only the DPP campaigned on the basis of a `clean election with integrity.' We neither bought votes nor got involved with gangsters," Lin said. "Yet we still were beaten by `black-gold,' and I am therefore worried that organized crime groups may increase their power."
DPP chairman Lin I-hsiung (林義雄) and Chen Shui-bian, who both campaigned extensively for Lin, both said from the DPP's central headquarters that they were disappointed by the result -- which they said indicated Yunlin residents could not put an end to the county's "gangster" problem.
"We may not have done enough to persuade Yunlin residents to accept our platform -- to effect a shift in power and terminate the `black gold,'" Chen stressed.
Other DPP heavyweights had also campaigned extensively in the county, in what they said was an attempt to persuade local residents that if Chang Jung-wei was elected, gangster organizations might be encouraged to join other elections for the chiefs of local administrations.
"In past decades, gang leaders could only run for positions as low-level representatives such as county or city councilors, or as lawmakers. But Chang's victory can be recorded as a landmark, one that may lead organized crime leaders to compete with other politicians for county commissioner or even higher-level elections," said Ma Yung-cheng (馬永成), former Taipei deputy secretary-general.
The KMT's candidate, Chang Cheng-hsiung (
Further explaining the party's poor showing, KMT officials said they suspect some factions did not throw their support behind Chang Cheng-hsiung, and even gave their support to Chang Jung-wei.
"Where did Chang Jung-wei's money and other supplies come from? They could be from factions within the KMT. The increased votes he got are from those defecting from the KMT," said Johnson Chen (陳瓊讚), director of the KMT organizational affairs department.
see on page
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
DEFENSIVE EDGE: The liaison officer would work with Taiwan on drones and military applications for other civilian-developed technologies, a source said A Pentagon unit tasked with facilitating the US military’s adoption of new technology is soon to deploy officials to dozens of friendly nations, including Taiwan, the Financial Times reported yesterday. The US Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) is to send a representative to collaborate with Taiwan on drones and military applications from the semiconductor industry by the end of the year, the British daily reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “Drones will certainly be a focus, but they will also be looking at connecting to the broader civilian and dual-use ecosystem, including the tech sector,” one source was
RSS