The Jenn Lann Temple (鎮瀾宮) in Taichung’s Dajia District (大甲) yesterday became a hot spot for political campaigning by a couple of contenders for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairmanship, as they laid out their plans for the party during their visits to the nation’s most famous Matsu temple.
Accompanied by temple vice chairman Cheng Ming-kun (鄭銘坤), former KMT vice chairman Steve Chan (詹啟賢) arrived at 9am to pay homage to the goddess of the sea.
The KMT needs a leader with corporate experience as it weathers difficult times, Chan said, outlining how he helped Chi Mei Medical Center and vaccine maker Adimmune Corp (國光生技) get back on their feet when he led the two companies.
Photo: CNA
“Different challenges will surface at different stages and they have to be dealt with by different people. The most important tasks for the KMT right now are crisis management and making it more in-sync with society for it to regain the public’s support,” Chan said.
If he were elected party chairman on May 20, he would work toward representing the party in the 2020 presidential election, Chan said, adding that he would be willing to take a backseat should a better candidate emerge.
Having served as minister of the now-defunct department of health and policy adviser to former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), Chan resigned as KMT vice chairman earlier this month, reportedly due to his disapproval of KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu’s (洪秀柱) handling of the thorny party assets issue.
Hours later, KMT Vice Chairman and former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) arrived at the temple, accompanied by several high-profile politicians, including former Taichung mayor Jason Hu (胡志強), temple chairman Yen Ching-piao (顏清標), and scores of Taichung city councilors and local borough wardens.
Hau said he would not run for the presidency in 2020 if elected KMT chairman and would respect different opinions.
Hau said he intends to move the party toward collective leadership, facilitate integration between the KMT’s legislative caucus and local city and county council caucuses, and push for a generational change in the party.
“The most important goal is for the party to regain power and ensure its victory in the 2018 local elections and the 2020 presidential race,” Hau said.
MAKING WAVES: China’s maritime militia could become a nontraditional threat in war, clogging up shipping lanes to prevent US or Japanese intervention, a report said About 1,900 Chinese ships flying flags of convenience and fishing vessels that participated in China’s military exercises around Taiwan last month and in January last year have been listed for monitoring, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) Deputy Director-General Hsieh Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said yesterday. Following amendments to the Commercial Port Act (商港法) and the Law of Ships (船舶法) last month, the CGA can designate possible berthing areas or deny ports of call for vessels suspected of loitering around areas where undersea cables can be accessed, Oceans Affairs Council Minister Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said. The list of suspected ships, originally 300, had risen to about
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
Japan’s strategic alliance with the US would collapse if Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV program late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticized her for igniting tensions with China with the earlier remarks. Ties between Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could bring about a Japanese
The WHO ignored early COVID-19 warnings from Taiwan, US Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services Jim O’Neill said on Friday, as part of justification for Washington withdrawing from the global health body. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday said that the US was pulling out of the UN agency, as it failed to fulfill its responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The WHO “ignored early COVID warnings from Taiwan in 2019 by pretending Taiwan did not exist, O’Neill wrote on X on Friday, Taiwan time. “It ignored rigorous science and promoted lockdowns.” The US will “continue international coordination on infectious
RSS