The Taipei City Government yesterday called on the central government to support an expansion of its West District Gateway Project during a closely watched meeting between President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲).
At about 2pm yesterday, Tsai and Ko met at the plaza of the historic North Gate (北門) in Taipei, where Taipei Deputy Mayor Charles Lin (林欽榮) briefed the president on improvements made to the surrounding area before the group went into the adjacent Taipei Post Office for further discussions.
Lin began by outlining some of the major accomplishments of the project during Ko’s first term as mayor, including the demolition of a ramp to Zhongxiao Bridge (忠孝橋); the resurfacing of the North Gate, which was partially obstructed from view by the ramp; the construction of the Taipei Travel Plaza (台北行旅廣場); and the relocation, preservation and reopening of the Mitsui Warehouse (三井倉庫).
Photo: CNA
He then discussed three of the project’s next goals: the construction of Taipei Twin Towers (台北雙子星); the restoration and reopening of the Japanese colonial-era Railway Department’s headquarters as a museum; and the transformation of the area around Taipei Post Office into a hub for innovation and financial technology.
The city government hopes to turn the project, which it initiated to rehabilitate the area’s image as a gateway to the capital, into a “national gateway project,” into which NT$100 billion (US$3.24 billion) would be invested, Lin said.
The city government would lead the initiative, but as much of the land within the planned development area belongs to various central government agencies or government-owned businesses, the central and city governments would need to work together to speed up the project, he added.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
About 30 minutes into the meeting, an adviser handed Tsai a note, which she read before passing to Ko.
The note’s message prompted both to smile.
Asked by reporters about the note’s content at a question-and-answer session after the meeting, Tsai was initially reluctant to read it aloud, but then said that the note pertained to some members of the media commenting on the lack of interaction between her and Ko during the meeting.
Tsai and Ko were asked what was discussed during a 15-minute break in the meeting to allow the media to move their equipment inside the building.
Organizers had originally said that the entirety of the meeting would be public.
“I do not know if you will believe me,” Tsai said, adding that they discussed the report they were about to hear.
Other people were in the room in which they were waiting, she said.
Asked about his thoughts on cooperation between the pan-green camp led by the Democratic Progressive Party and a so-called “white force” he represents, Ko said that there would be no conflict, as long as everyone prioritizes the well-being of the public.
He declined to comment on whether he would support a potential re-election bid by Tsai in 2020.
CREDIT-GRABBER: China said its coast guard rescued the crew of a fishing vessel that caught fire, who were actually rescued by a nearby Taiwanese boat and the CGA Maritime search and rescue operations do not have borders, and China should not use a shipwreck to infringe upon Taiwanese sovereignty, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The coast guard made the statement in response to the China Coast Guard (CCG) saying it saved a Taiwanese fishing boat. The Chuan Yu No. 6 (全漁6號), a fishing vessel registered in Keelung, on Thursday caught fire and sank in waters northeast of Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台). The vessel left Keelung’s Badouzih Fishing Harbor (八斗子漁港) at 3:35pm on Sunday last week, with seven people on board — a 62-year-old Taiwanese captain surnamed Chang (張) and six
RISKY BUSINESS: The ‘incentives’ include initiatives that get suspended for no reason, creating uncertainty and resulting in considerable losses for Taiwanese, the MAC said China’s “incentives” failed to sway sentiment in Taiwan, as willingness to work in China hit a record low of 1.6 percent, a Ministry of Labor survey showed. The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) also reported that the number of Taiwanese workers in China has nearly halved from a peak of 430,000 in 2012 to an estimated 231,000 in 2024. That marked a new low in the proportion of Taiwanese going abroad to work. The ministry’s annual survey on “Labor Life and Employment Status” includes questions respondents’ willingness to seek employment overseas. Willingness to work in China has steadily declined from
The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Amusement Tax Act (娛樂稅法) that would abolish taxes on films, cultural activities and competitive sporting events, retaining the fee only for dance halls and golf courses. The proposed changes would set the maximum tax rate for dance halls and golf courses at 50 and 20 percent respectively, with local governments authorized to suspend the levies. Article 2 of the act says that “amusement tax shall be levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement places, facilities or activities” in six categories: “Cinema; professional singing, story-telling, dancing, circus, magic show, acrobatics
INFLATION UP? The IMF said CPI would increase to 1.5 percent this year, while the DGBAS projected it would rise to 1.68 percent, with GDP per capita of US$44,181 The IMF projected Taiwan’s real GDP would grow 5.2 percent this year, up from its 2.1 percent outlook in January, despite fears of global economic disruptions sparked by the US-Iran conflict. Taiwan’s consumer price index (CPI) is projected to increase to 1.5 percent, while unemployment would be 3.4 percent, roughly in line with estimates for Asia as a whole, the international body wrote in its Global Economic Outlook Report published in the US on Monday. The figures are comparatively better than the IMF outlook for the rest of the world, which pegged real GDP growth at 3.1 percent, down from 3.3 percent
RSS