President Chen Shui-bian (
"Had it known it would make such a decision, it should not have opposed it [the voting procedure] in the first place," Chen said.
Chen said there had always only been one voting format, which was the one-step announced by the Central Election Commission (CEC).
Under the one-step voting procedure, voters will receive two ballots for the legislative elections and two referendum ballots upon entering the polling station and then cast them into four different boxes.
The KMT, however, had insisted on using a two-step voting system, under which voters would first cast their legislative election ballots before picking up the referendum ballots.
In an attempt to put an end to the political wrangling, CEC Chairman Chang Cheng-hsiung (張政雄) said on Thursday that it would allow voters to follow the two-step voting procedure as long as local commissions set up polling stations in line with the setup used in the one-step voting format.
Although the KMT initially rejected the idea, it reversed its decision following a meeting between the KMT and pan-blue local government heads.
The KMT claimed that local government heads had agreed to accept the compromise to end the dispute, which had caused turmoil and confusion among front-line election personnel.
Despite the criticism, Chen yesterday said he was grateful the KMT was willing to end the dispute, as it had engendered much controversy in the past month.
Chen made the remarks yesterday morning while campaigning for Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative candidate Chien Chao-tung (簡肇棟) in Taichung County.
Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary-General Chen Chin-jun (陳景峻) yesterday said the KMT should apologize to the public for causing so much trouble over the past month, despite its recent change of heart.
Chen Chin-jun said it was a victory for the people because more than 70 percent of the public surveyed in a recent poll said they supported the one-step system.
The Cabinet would continue to monitor the attitude of local election commissions and will "remove all obstructions" if they fail to abide by the CEC decision, he said.
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
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