Although Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) publicly voiced pessimism on Tuesday about the election outcome of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday said the party will do its best in the poll and will not give up a constituency.
On the first day of the official election season yesterday, the DPP held a news conference promoting its candidates.
"Compared with the KMT candidates, who have either been convicted of corruption or have refused to pay off their outstanding bank loans, the DPP's candidates are more capable and have more comprehensive political experience," Su said.
"I hope the focus of this election will return to the qualifications of the candidates, and voters can choose those who will contribute to local construction and development," he said.
But facing questions about the overall evaluation of the election environment, Su acknowledged that some DPP candidates have had a hard time overtaking their KMT rivals.
Chiayi City and Ilan County are two electoral districts in which the DPP has shown no sign of overcoming flagging support.
Su said former Ilan County commissioner Yu Shyi-kun has asked for leave from the Presidential Office to help campaign for DPP candidate Chen Ding-nan (陳定南), and that party higher-ups will also try to boost the prospects of Chiayi Mayor Chen Li-chen (陳麗貞), who is seeking re-election.
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
CHANGES: After-school tutoring periods, extracurricular activities during vacations or after-school study periods must not be used to teach new material, the ministry said The Ministry of Education yesterday announced new rules that would ban giving tests to most elementary and junior-high school students during morning study and afternoon rest periods. The amendments to regulations governing public education at elementary schools and junior high schools are to be implemented on Aug. 1. The revised rules stipulate that schools are forbidden to use after-school tutoring periods, extracurricular activities during summer or winter vacation or after-school study periods to teach new course material. In addition, schools would be prohibited from giving tests or exams to students in grades one to eight during morning study and afternoon break periods, the
Advocates of the rights of motorcycle and scooter riders yesterday protested in front of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications in Taipei, making three demands. They were joined by 30 passenger vehicles, which surrounded the ministry to make three demands related to traffic regulations — that motorcycles and scooters above 250cc be allowed on highways, that all motorcycles and scooters be allowed on inside lanes, and that driver and rider training programs be reformed. The ministry said that it has no plans to allow motorcycles on national highways for the time being, and said that motorcycles would be allowed on the inner
AMENDMENT: Contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau must be reported, and failure to comply could result in a prison sentence, the proposal stated The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday voted against a proposed bill by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers that would require elected officials to seek approval before visiting China. DPP Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) proposed amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), stipulate that contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau should be reported, while failure to comply would be punishable by prison sentences of up to three years, alongside a fine of NT$10 million (US$309,041). Fifty-six voted with the TPP in opposition