The Central Election Commission (CEC) made public the line-up of the 10 referendum debates yesterday, ending weeks of rumor and controversy.
The debates will start on Feb. 29 and run for three consecutive Sundays. There will be four debates on Feb. 29 and March 7, and two on March 14.
UFO Radio chairman Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康) said that the line-up was "an act of God."
"We didn't know which Cabinet official we'll be facing in the debates until the CEC made the announcement today," Jaw said.
Kao Cheng-yen (高成炎), acting convener of the Green Party and leader of the Association of the 21st Century Agenda which will take part in two of the referendum debates, said that he was disappointed with the lawmaking body.
"I still cannot figure out why the Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] and People First Party [PFP] bailed out of the events, while they're vehemently opposing the election-day referendum," he said.
Another debater worth noting was Ruan Ming (
Ruan was one of the five debaters earlier chosen by Premier Yu Shyi-kun to discuss the referendum's negotiation question last Monday.
Ruan will play the opposing side against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Cho Jung-tai (
In the first referendum question about China's missile threat, Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) will face off with independent Legislator May Chin (高金素梅); Deputy Secretary General to the President Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) will debate against Chan Chao-li (詹朝立), a poet and president of the Speech and Debate Association; Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) caucus whip Lo Chih-ming (羅志明) will speak against Yeh Yao-peng (葉耀鵬), a former DPP Control Yuan member; DPP Legislator Yu Ching (尤清) will face Kao; and DPP Legislator Julien Kuo (郭正亮) will face Jaw.
In the second question about cross-strait negotiations, Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) debate opponent is writer and political commentator Li Ao (李敖); Minister without Portfolio Yeh Jiunn-rong (葉俊榮) will debate against former DPP chairman Hsu Hsin-liang (許信良); DPP Legislator Chiu Tai-san (邱太三) comes up against Ding Ting-yu (丁庭宇), a sociology professor and president of the Gallup Market Research Corp, Taiwan; DPP Legislator Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) will oppose Ruan Ming; and Mainland Affairs Council Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) will talk against Independent Legislator Sisy Chen (陳文茜).
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
Three tropical depressions yesterday intensified into tropical storms, with one likely to affect Taiwan as a typhoon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The three storms, named Mitag, Ragasa and Neoguri, were designated as storms No. 17 to 19 for this year, the CWA said. Projected routes indicate that Ragasa is most likely to affect Taiwan, it said. As of 2am today, Ragasa was 1,370km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) on the southernmost tip of Taiwan. It was moving west-northwest before turning northwest, slowing from 11kph to 6kph, the agency said. A sea warning for Ragasa is unlikely before Sunday afternoon, but its outer rim
RSS