Another "explicit" admirer of Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) made himself public yesterday, this time via a large sign saying "I love you" placed alongside the highway near Changhua in central Taiwan.
The admirer, Tony Chen, who is an English teacher at a cram school, said the move was absolutely not a momentary impulse, adding that he has planned it for a long time as a gift to Lu for the upcoming Valentine's Day.
The billboard shows a photo Chen took with Lu and the words: "Vice President Lu Shiu-lian, I Love You. Confession from Famous English Teacher Tony Chen. Happy Valentine's Day!"
The "I love you" sign will stand for one year at cost of NT$1.028 million, including location rent, fees to have the sign made, the electricity bill and building costs, according to Chen.
Chen denied putting up the highway sign to gain personal publicity, saying that "I don't need to publicize myself as I'm already a popular cram school English teacher, a well known writer and a scholar with two master's degrees from the United States who has more than 100 lecture chairs a year."
He stressed that the sign is only an expression of his admiration for the vice president, whom he said he has long been attracted to for her "compassion for people, congeniality, courage, political perceptiveness and global vision."
Noting that a roadside sign is the "most direct" way of showing his love for Lu, Chen said that he wants the entire country to see his expression of love and that he hopes the vice president will give him a kind response.
If possible, Chen said, he would be pleased to help the vice president to fulfill one of her wishes of seeing the English level of the people of Taiwan further upgraded.
Some people have expressed concern that the sign might be viewed as illegal and therefore removed. Chen responded by arguing that if that is the case, all the billboards along the Sun Yat-sen Freeway should also be removed.
A previous admirer of Lu, a man who runs a Taipei debt collection agency tried to take 999 roses to her at the Presidential Office last year.
Tung Nien-tai (董念台) tried to bring Lu the roses to court her, but the move caused a commotion in front of the Presidential Office and Tung and his roses were barred by police from entering the premises.
The flowers were not acknowledged by Lu's office and Lu did not respond to Tung's courtship.
DEFENSE: The first set of three NASAMS that were previously purchased is expected to be delivered by the end of this year and deployed near the capital, sources said Taiwan plans to procure 28 more sets of M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as well as nine additional sets of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), military sources said yesterday. Taiwan had previously purchased 29 HIMARS launchers from the US and received the first 11 last year. Once the planned purchases are completed and delivered, Taiwan would have 57 sets of HIMARS. The army has also increased the number of MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) purchased from 64 to 84, the sources added. Each HIMARS launch pod can carry six Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, capable of
GET TO SAFETY: Authorities were scrambling to evacuate nearly 700 people in Hualien County to prepare for overflow from a natural dam formed by a previous typhoon Typhoon Podul yesterday intensified and accelerated as it neared Taiwan, with the impact expected to be felt overnight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, while the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration announced that schools and government offices in most areas of southern and eastern Taiwan would be closed today. The affected regions are Tainan, Kaohsiung and Chiayi City, and Yunlin, Chiayi, Pingtung, Hualien and Taitung counties, as well as the outlying Penghu County. As of 10pm last night, the storm was about 370km east-southeast of Taitung County, moving west-northwest at 27kph, CWA data showed. With a radius of 120km, Podul is carrying maximum sustained
Tropical Storm Podul strengthened into a typhoon at 8pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with a sea warning to be issued late last night or early this morning. As of 8pm, the typhoon was 1,020km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving west at 23kph. The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA said. Based on the tropical storm’s trajectory, a land warning could be issued any time from midday today, it added. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said Podul is a fast-moving storm that is forecast to bring its heaviest rainfall and strongest
TRAJECTORY: The severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday, and would influence the nation to varying degrees, a forecaster said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it would likely issue a sea warning for Tropical Storm Podul tomorrow morning and a land warning that evening at the earliest. CWA forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) said the severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving west at 21kph and packing sustained winds of 108kph and gusts of up to 136.8kph, the CWA said. Lin said that the tropical storm was about 1,710km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, with two possible trajectories over the next one
RSS