People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) and Legisla-tive Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) had a "casual meeting" yesterday, during which the two said that improving cross-strait relations is the key to resolving the planned Cabinet reshuffle and the long-stalled arms procurement bill.
Casually dressed and calling each other "good old friend," the meeting of the two pan-blue heavyweights yesterday seemed more harmonious than Soong's meeting with KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
Yesterday's meeting came in response to the president's request for Wang to exchange ideas with opposition parties on how to solve the arms procurement bill and Cabinet issues.
PHOTO: CHEN TSE-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
President Chen Shui-bian (
"It requires understanding and even support from the opposition parties to solve those issues. I already talked to Chairman Ma, and it is also necessary to seek PFP Chairman Soong's support," Wang said.
During the 80-minute meeting yesterday, Wang and Soong reconfirmed the consensus reached in the Ma-Soong meeting, which concluded that a clear policy was the priority concerning the Cabinet, that the pan-blue camp would only agree on a "reasonable" arms procurement bill, and that stable cross-strait relations are the key to all of those issues.
"Problematic cross-strait relations is the biggest issue in Taiwan's politics. We both agreed that only by breaking the cross-strait deadlock can Taiwan stabilize its domestic politics and revitalize its economy," Wang said yesterday after the meeting.
Soong echoed Wang's remarks, and also stressed the importance of reaching consensus in order to solve the Cabinet issue.
"If the government can draft a clear policy and reach a consensus with opposition parties, then it would be easy for the two sides to solve domestic issues and cross-strait problems," he said. "If we can do so, who forms the Cabinet will not be an issue."
Soong lauded Wang for playing a key role in the legislature, and said he believed the speaker can reconcile "unnecessary confrontations" between the governing and opposition parties on major issues.
Besides meeting with the KMT and PFP chairmen, Wang said he will also talk to the head of the Taiwan Solidarity Union and Non-partisan Solidarity Union to seek consensus.
Meanwhile, commenting on the Wang-Soong meeting, Ma said that frequent communication within the pan-blue camp should be encouraged.
"It's good. I think pan-blue leaders should meet more often to communicate with each other," he said yesterday after attending a municipal event.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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