The Taiwan People’s Party (台灣民眾黨, TPP) was formally established yesterday in Taipei, with the party announcing its constitution and the election of Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) as its chairman.
The founding ceremony was held at the National Taiwan University Hospital International Convention Center, with hundreds of people attending.
Ko arrived shortly past noon and was welcomed by enthusiastic chants of: “Taiwan’s choice — Ko Wen-je,” “The best choice — Ko Wen-je” and “The party members’ choice — Ko Wen-je” — similar to the slogans used during his mayoral re-election campaign last year.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The party has 111 founding members, with 72 attending the morning meeting to decide the party’s constitution and elect a chairman, a cohost of the event said.
The founding members include members of the Ko administration — adviser Tsai Pi-ju (蔡壁如), Secretary-General Chang Jer-yang (張哲揚), spokesman Liu Yi-ting (劉奕霆) and deputy spokespeople Ke Yu-an (柯昱安) and Huang Ching-ying (黃?瑩) — and Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (台北捷運) chairman Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗).
Ko said that the TPP was founded to change Taiwan’s political culture, as the ideological battle between the two major parties has left the nation in a rut and led to friction over the past two decades.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
He said that his foremost principle is to promote the nation’s “general interests and the public’s maximum well-being.”
The biggest problem that Taiwanese politics has faced since 2000 is the destruction of the civil service system, because policies can be suddenly changed by political forces, without professional and technical discussions, unlike the past when there were technocrats, he said.
“While honesty and diligence should be basic requirements of government, they have become rare in today’s Taiwan,” he said, adding that the government needs to improve governance, regain the public’s trust and highlight the nation’s value to the world with a graft-free government.
Photo: CNA
Ko reiterated that he believes “Taiwanese values” are the implementation of universal values in Taiwan, including democracy, freedom, diversity, openness, rule of law, human rights, caring for the underprivileged and sustainable development.
“The TPP we established today is the coming together of ideas. We are not political leaders, but rather hope to become preachers of culture,” he said.
Public opinion, professional expertise and values are the three most important elements in decisionmaking, he added.
According to the party’s charter, the TPP conforms to the existing constitutional system and aims to strengthen national governance, enhance national interest and abolish corruption.
It will take a practical approach in foreign relations to ensure Taiwan’s survival and protect its sovereignty, it says.
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) sent flowers to congratulate the party on its founding.
Gou’s gift came with a card that says: “Remember the reason it all started. It is our shared goal to ensure Taiwan’s stability and prosperity.”
Wang’s gift came with a message calling for solidarity to ensure peace and stability for Taiwan.
Gou’s and Wang’s gifts were the only flower baskets placed at the entrance of the venue.
Yonglin Education Foundation chief executive officer Amanda Liu (劉宥彤), a member of Gou’s campaign team, said she attended the event in her personal capacity to offer the party her best wishes.
The event coincided with Ko’s 60th birthday, and the mayor’s parents attended the event, where supporters shouted “Happy birthday” to Ko.
Outside the venue, several members of pro-independence groups and self-styled “Ko haters” staged a rally and called on Ko to resign as mayor if he runs for next year’s presidential election.
Additional reporting by Ann Maxon
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
CHINA POLICY: At the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China, the two sides issued strong support for Taiwan and condemned China’s actions in the South China Sea The US and EU issued a joint statement on Wednesday supporting Taiwan’s international participation, notably omitting the “one China” policy in a departure from previous similar statements, following high-level talks on China and the Indo-Pacific region. The statement also urged China to show restraint in the Taiwan Strait. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary-General Stefano Sannino cochaired the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth US-EU Indo-Pacific Consultations from Monday to Tuesday. Since the Indo-Pacific consultations were launched in 2021, references to the “one China” policy have appeared in every statement apart from the
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from