Former secretary-general of the Presidential Office Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) yesterday came out in support of former senior presidential adviser Koo Kwang-ming’s (辜寬敏) bid to become Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman.
The election of the DPP’s new chairperson is not about responding to appeals from specific DPP party members, factions or the “Young Turks,” but is about the expectations and sadness of 5.44 million DPP voters over the party’s failure in the March 22 presidential election, Chen said.
“On that matter, Koo is the one and only candidate,” Chen said.
The other two candidates for the election scheduled for May 18 are former vice premier Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), 52, and DPP Legislator Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮), 73.
Tsai is backed by the party’s younger generation, which hopes she can transform the party so that it would stand a better chance of winning back voters who have been disappointed by the party’s performance over the last eight years.
Chen said he disagreed with the argument that the party should review its traditional line and move toward the center and closer to swing voters.
“If those are the considerations in choosing a DPP chairperson, we won’t be able to revive the party. We might as well think about the possibility of abandoning the DPP,” Chen said.
Well-known Hakka fiction writer Li Chiao (李喬) also threw his support behind Koo, saying that Tsai was supported by factions of the party, which would make it difficult for her to reform the party’s “factional” politics.
Koo, 82, said he would set up a campaign office next week to demonstrate his determination to win and that Chen would be in charge of his campaign.
DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh’s (謝長廷) long-term aid Hsu Kuo-yong (徐國勇), a former DPP legislator, also backed Koo’s bid. He said he was not there on behalf of Hsieh.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost