Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said yesterday that the public should not draw a link between next month’s mayor and county commissioner elections and the public’s view of the performance of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and his government.
The Dec. 5 vote will be the first major election to cover all parts of the country since Ma took office in May last year.
Eligible voters in 17 cities and counties will cast ballots to elect mayors and commissioners, city and county councilors, and city and township heads in the elections.
“What does the election of county councilors or township chiefs have to do with President Ma’s national policy?” Wu asked when approached by reporters in Nantou County yesterday.
Wu said that while in the US, the midterm election is seen as a vote of confidence for the sitting president as it is held in between presidential terms, in Taiwan, candidates are selected for their connections with local factions, their personal image and whether they have competence to serve the public, all of which have little to do with the nation’s leader.
Wu said the population of the areas in next month’s elections was about 9 million, while the five municipalities that select leaders next year have a population of more than 13 million. These are Taipei County, Taichung City and County, Tainan City and County and Kaohsiung City and County, which will be upgraded or merged into municipalities, and Taipei City.
Saying that the Ma administration faces a “pop quiz” and a “midterm exam” every day, including the A(H1N1) flu outbreak and flooding caused by Typhoon Morakot in August, Wu said the government would not shirk its responsibility to the public.
At a separate setting yesterday, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Spokesman Lee Chien-jung (李建榮) said Ma, who doubles as the KMT chairman, will spend the next two weeks visiting cities and counties and stumping for candidates ahead of the elections. The KMT will also arrange for the premier and the vice premier to attend more campaigning events, Lee said.
Ma yesterday led party officials in campaigning for KMT candidates in Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Hsinchu County and Miaoli.
The party held its Central Standing Committee (CSC) meeting in Hsinchu yesterday to drum up support for Hsinchu County commissioner candidate Chiu Ching-chun (邱鏡淳).
Ma called for party unity and urged members to remain loyal to the party after Hsinchu County Commissioner Cheng Yung-chin (鄭永金) voiced support for Chang Pi-chin (張碧琴), who left the KMT to run as an independent.
“It is meaningful that we chose the Hsinchu Yimin Temple to hold the CSC today. I urge KMT members to follow the example of the god Yimin and be loyal to the party,” Ma said yesterday.
The god Yimin, who is known for being righteous, is popular among Hakka.
Ma later accompanied Chiu on a visit to local supporters and promised to visit Hsinchu again ahead of the election.
Ma visited Taoyuan in the evening to attend the party’s 115th anniversary celebration, with party heavyweights gathering to campaign for Chiu, Taoyuan County commissioner candidate John Wu (吳志揚), Hsinchu mayoral candidate Hsu Ming-tsai (?]), and Miaoli County commissioner candidate Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻).
Former KMT chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) joined Ma, Wu Den-yih, legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) and Vice Premier Eric Chu (朱立倫) to show support for his son John Wu (吳志揚) in his hometown.
Taoyuan County Commissioner Tseng Chun-yi (曾忠義), who lost the primary to John Wu, also showed up at the campaigning event to show his support.
KMT Secretary-General Chan Chun-po (詹春柏) said the party would focus its campaigning efforts on the six cities and counties in which the party was facing threats of pan-blue splits, including Hsinchu County, Hualien County, Yilan County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County and Pingtung County.
Ma, Chu and Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) will visit Yilan County this week. The trio, also known as “Ma-Li-Chiang” (“high horsepower,” 馬立強) for being the three popular stars in the party, will join forces to campaign for incumbent commissioner Lu Kuo-hua (呂國華), Chan said.
At the celebration of the KMT’s 115th anniversary last night, Ma vowed to lead the party to victory in the upcoming elections, while stressing the need for party reform.
“The KMT is a party with the ability to reflect and reform ... We want not only to win these elections, but to win the people’s hearts,” Ma told party members.
Ma said the party should step up its reform efforts to improve the party’s reputation after several KMT members lost their seats in the legislature.
“[This] was a warning signal and we can’t take it for granted. We must take the opportunity to reflect and improve,” Ma said.
“The KMT is not afraid of revealing internal scandals. We must let the people know that the KMT is a party that acknowledges its mistakes,” he said.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft