The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday said a local branch was looking into Hualien County Commissioner Hsieh Shen-shan’s (謝深山) public endorsement of independent candidate Chang Chi-ming (張志明), who left the KMT to run against the party’s candidate in the election.
Hsieh attended a campaign event held by Chang, Hualien County deputy commissioner, on Monday, sparking concern about his violating party regulations to campaign for non-party members.
KMT Secretary-General Chan Chun-po (詹春柏) said yesterday that the party had asked its Hualien branch to look into the matter, declining to confirm whether or not the KMT would punish Hsieh.
“We will handle the issue according to the report presented by the local branch,” he said.
Asked whether the KMT was refraining from punishing Hsieh, a long-term party member and an influential politician in Hualien, Chan said the party adopted tough regulations against any members who campaigned for candidates from other parties.
Juan Kang-meng (阮剛猛), director of the KMT’s Party Disciplinary Committee, said the party had revoked the membership of Hsinchu County Commissioner Cheng Yung-chin (鄭永金) for campaigning for independent candidate Chang Bi-chin (張碧琴) and that the party would adopt the same standard with Hsieh’s case.
In related news, in his capacity as KMT chairman, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday led party officials to pay their respects to Sun Yat-sen (孫中山) to celebrate the 115th anniversary of the party’s precursor, the Revive China Society.
Ma later visited Hsinchu County again to campaign for party candidate Chiu Ching-chun (邱鏡淳) last night.
The situation in Hsinchu remains tense as the KMT faces a split in the county. Cheng has been endorsing Chang Bi-chin, whose party membership was revoked for insisting on running in the election.
Meanwhile, Liu Ti-hao (劉櫂豪), the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) candidate for Taitung commissioner, yesterday drew a parallel between his rival, Justin Huang (黃健庭), and Fu Kun-chi (傅崑萁), who is running for commissioner in Hualien County as an independent candidate after being ousted from the KMT.
Fu, the frontrunner in the Hualien race, was barred by the KMT from taking part in the party primary after being found guilty in his first and second trials in two separate legal cases.
The KMT has been trying to divert potential votes from Fu to its candidate Tu Li-hua (杜麗華) by saying that Fu might not be able to assume office even if he wins the election as his third trial is expected to end soon. If found guilty, he would have to serve time in jail.
Liu said that the KMT should have disciplined Huang, who was also indicted for corruption.
Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), however, disagreed.
“There is no comparison between the case of Fu and Huang,” he said. “As Huang was indicted and not found guilty, we can assume that he is not guilty.”
In related news, the DPP yesterday said a private investigator it hired to look into allegations of vote-buying in Yilan County was forced to divulge information he had gathered to the KMT camp.
Speaking at a press conference, DPP spokesman Chuang Shuo-han (莊碩漢) said the party would sue the KMT for violating personal liberties and coercion by demanding the detective disclose the information.
Chuang said the party hired private investigators to help with its anti-vote buying effort and that recently one of the hired detectives was pressured into going to the campaign headquarters of KMT candidate Chen Han-chung (陳漢鐘) to relinquish his equipment and all the information he had gathered. Chuang called on the KMT to “play by the rules.”
DPP Deputy Secretary-General Hung Yao-fu (洪耀福) said party headquarters had information that a chief staffer of KMT Chiayi County candidate Wong Chung-chung’s (翁重鈞) campaign recently changed more than NT$1 million from NT$1,000 into NT$500 bills.
The DPP urged prosecutors to look into why the exchanges were made, saying it suspected the smaller bills might be used to bribe local voters.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS