DPP to finalize nominations tomorrow

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is scheduled to finalize the nomination of its legislative candidates tomorrow as the registration process is set to begin on Friday, the party's Culture and Information Department Director Hsieh Hsin-ni (謝欣霓) said yesterday.

The registration for January's legislative elections opens on Friday and closes on Nov. 21.

Independence activists yesterday urged the DPP to nominate Chen Tseng-chih (陳增芝) to run in Taipei County's 11th district.

As a DPP member for 14 years, Chen said it was a pity the DPP had not nominated anyone in that district and that she would like to give the electorate another choice aside from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Lo Ming-tsai (羅明才).

Chinese dissident Ruan Ming (阮銘) told a press conference that legislators come from all walks of life, from political families and to those associated with organized crime.

With the adoption of a new electoral system for the legislative poll, Ruan said that the public wanted to see new blood in the legislature.

"I call on President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who doubles as DPP chairman, to enlist Chen Tseng-chih so the DPP can win the battle in Sindian (新店) and drive the `gangster family' out of the legislature," he said.

"Taiwan needs change and Chen Tseng-chih is the power of change representing Hakka women and the media," he said.

While the DPP seeks to lure former KMT Legislator Lee Sen-zong (李顯榮) and legislators who have been expelled from the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) to join the legislative election, Ruan said he did not understand why the DPP did not recruit Chen Tseng-chih.

Lee lost the KMT nomination in Taipei County's first district to fellow legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇). Lee protested his party's failure to pursue localization and burned his party membership card to show his determination to run in the January poll.

Lee yesterday declined to confirm whether he would join the DPP and dismissed Wu's allegation that he left after losing the party's nomination and would join the DPP.

The DPP also wants to recruit TSU legislators Liao Pen-yen (廖本煙) and Huang Chung-yung (黃宗源), who were expelled for being "uncooperative" and "failing to toe the party line." The TSU has followed up by revoking the candidacies of legislators Yin Ling-ying (尹伶瑛) and David Huang (黃適卓).

Meanwhile, Yin yesterday asked her DPP rival, Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國), to let opinion polls decide who should represent the pan-green camp in next year's election.

Yin had said she would run as a DPP candidate in Yunlin County's second constituency if she won in the opinion polls.

If she lost, she said she would be glad to serve as Liu's campaign chief.