People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜), the PFP’s presidential candidate, yesterday criticized the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and warned pan-blue supporters of the KMT that they were only digging its grave.
Soong was responding to comments by Broadcasting Corp of China president Jaw Shaw-kang (趙少康), who on Thursday at a rally on Taipei’s Ketagalan Boulevard for Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the KMT’s presidential candidate, told the crowd that “to vote for Soong is to vote for [President] Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).”
Tsai, of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), is seeking re-election in today’s election.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Soong on Thursday night on Facebook said that as the KMT is saying that voting for him is to vote for Tsai and the DPP is saying that “to vote for Soong is to vote for Han,” their messaging indicates that he is the best choice outside of the two largest parties.
Taiwanese have waited two decades to be able to vote for a candidate who is both wise and capable, he added.
Speaking to the media yesterday, Soong said that in 2000, Jaw created phony polls to trigger the “dump-save” effect, which persuaded pan-blue supporters to not vote for him, then an independent candidate, but rather for former vice president Lien Chan (連戰), who was then the KMT’s candidate.
Pan-blue camp supporters should vote for someone who can truly champion the Three Principles of the People (三民主義) to uphold the ideals of Republic of China founder Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) and embody former president Chiang Ching-kuo’s (蔣經國) willingness to work for the people, Soong said.
“Any effort to manipulate voter choice would only benefit me” due to the weakness of the KMT’s candidate and because changes to the economy and industry require an experienced hand to guide the nation in the right direction, he said.
Soong pointed out that Han took a seat for a few minutes during the televised presidential debate, but he, at 70 years old, did not budge an inch throughout the event.
It is evident who is more experienced and better off constitutionally, Soong said, adding that it would make no sense if people voted for an inferior choice when they have a better candidate.
The DPP talks about sovereignty, Soong said, but added that sovereignty should mean that people are the masters and that Taiwan’s sovereignty is in the hands of the people, and other nations should not be allowed to interfere.
After canvassing for votes in motorcades in the morning, Soong last night held a campaign in front of the PFP’s campaign headquarters in Taipei, where he shared the stage with Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘).
Gou called the crowd to give their party votes to the PFP and the Taiwan People’s Party, and prevent the DPP from retaining its legislative majority.
The PFP said that nearly 5,000 people attended the rally.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
EASING ANXIETY: The new guide includes a section encouraging people to discuss the threat of war with their children and teach them how to recognize disinformation The Ministry of National Defense’s All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency yesterday released its updated civil defense handbook, which defines the types of potential military aggression by an “enemy state” and self-protection tips in such scenarios. The agency has released three editions of the handbook since 2022, covering information from the preparation of go-bags to survival tips during natural disasters and war. Compared with the previous edition, released in 2023, the latest version has a clearer focus on wartime scenarios. It includes a section outlining six types of potential military threats Taiwan could face, including destruction of critical infrastructure and most undersea cables, resulting in
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
RSS