The PFP yesterday reacted coldly to a report saying it may ally with the DPP after the year-end legislative elections.
The PFP is apparently bothered by ongoing speculation triggered by a meeting between President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) in July.
A local newspaper yesterday quoted an unnamed DPP official as saying the DPP would not rule out the possibility of forming a ruling coalition with the PFP -- despite wide differences between the two parties' ideologies.
The official said cooperation between the DPP and PFP would symbolize a halt to vicious partisan struggles between political parties.
PFP spokesman Hsieh Kung-ping (
Hsieh said the PFP was not interested in reports about possible post-election political alliances. He said the PFP has tried to interact with other parties but the experiences proved to be negative.
DPP Secretary-general Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁) said that forming a coalition government after the elections would be inevitable, but that it is too early to predict which party the DPP will ally with.
Chen and Soong met on July 17 to discuss matters concerning the Economic Development Advisory Conference. It was widely reported that they also talked about forming a DPP-PFP coalition after the elections and that Chen even offered to appoint Soong as premier.
Such reports fueled speculation that Soong was hedging his bets with both the DPP and the KMT.
While the PFP denied the reports, Chen said that he "could not remember" if he had made such an offer to Soong.
Presidential Office Secretary-general Yu Shyi-kun said on Sept. 7 that there was never any discussion about forming a coalition government at the July 17 meeting.
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
RESTAURANT POISONING? Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang at a press conference last night said this was the first time bongkrekic acid was detected in Taiwan An autopsy discovered bongkrekic acid in a specimen collected from a person who died from food poisoning after dining at the Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said at a news conference last night. It was the first time bongkrekic acid was detected in Taiwan, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said. The testing conducted by forensic specialists at National Taiwan University was facilitated after a hospital voluntarily offered standard samples it had in stock that are required to test for bongkrekic acid, he said. Wang told the news conference that testing would continue despite
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)