A Taipei City councilor yesterday accused the Taipei City Government of misappropriating administrative resources to mobilize residents to attend the city's flag-raising ceremony this morning in front of Taipei City Hall.
The city government's demand that local borough directors each mobilize at least 10 residents to attend the ceremony is intended to steal thunder from the central government's Double Ten Day celebrations and create a campaign opportunity for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (
"At such a sensitive time before elections, the city government's move clearly violates its administrative neutrality," Hung told a press conference yesterday at Taipei City Council.
Hung later made a call to a borough director, who confirmed that Taipei City's Department of Civil Affairs had asked him to bring residents to the ceremony and promised to provide free rides and drinks for everyone who attends.
"I don't think the city government should force people to attend the ceremony. People should have the freedom to choose which event they want to attend," Lee Chuan-ming (李權民), a borough director in Xinyi District, said on the phone.
Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) separately denied the city was using inappropriate methods to mobilize residents to attend its celebration, saying that it was only inviting them and that this was "perfectly normal."
"I believe that the central government did the same thing for its flag-raising ceremony. Besides, it's easy for any borough to invite 10 residents to the event. We don't have to force them," he said when approached for comment.
Hau also criticized the central government, which he said was inappropriately using the National Day to promote its UN referendum proposal.
"The Taipei City event celebrates the birth of the Republic of China. We welcome not only Taipei residents but everyone to join us and express love for the nation," Hau said.
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 US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative.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
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
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