President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday attended an event in Taipei to promote a planned extension of the city’s mass rapid transit system (MRT) to include Taipei City’s Wanhua (萬華) and Jhonghe (中和), Taipei County.
The event was organized by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the Taipei Guest House. Ma and Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Yang (楊進添) said they held the event to wish residents of the city’s Zhongzheng (中正) and Wanhua districts a happy new year and to celebrate the “dream come true” of the planned Wanda (萬大) line.
The city plans to build the 22km line underground and have four stations in Zhongzheng and Wanhua districts. They are the Roosevelt Road and Nanhai Road, Nanhai Road and Heping W Road, Wanda Road and Xizang Road and Wanda Elementary School stations.
PHOTO: LU CHUN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
The Roosevelt-Nanhai stop will connect the Wanda line with the MRT’s Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station so passengers will be able to transfer to the Danshui, Xindian or Xinyi lines.
Ma greeted about 400 residents from the two districts’ 17 boroughs in Mandarin, Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese) and Hakka.
Ma, who lived in the Wanhua District for 11 years, said he had deep feelings for the area. Lin said the MRT Wanda line was the realization of another of Ma’s campaign promises. Ma said he had more election promises that have been put into practice.
Ma said that during his term as Taipei mayor, he had accomplished 93 percent of his campaign goals. As president, Ma said about 22 percent of his campaign promises had been accomplished and that he expected to finish most of them by the time his term ends in 2012, but he added that some projects may need more time.
Lin said residents of the two districts saw a step toward the realization of their dream when the Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) gave the NT$89 billion (US$2.78 billion) construction project the go-ahead last month.
“It is a dream come true and another of President Ma’s campaign platforms put into practice,” he said.
Describing Ma as someone “who has affection and faith,” Lin said the president made a tremendous effort to push the project during his stint as Taipei mayor, adding that it was unfortunate he did not obtain much support from the then-Democratic Progressive Party administration.
Lin thanked the Ministry of Transportation and Communications for earmarking NT$600 million before the CEPD approved the project. He also extended his appreciation to the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics, which he said allowed the ministry to do so. Lin said that although the project proved that the administration was efficient, but did not promote itself. He urged government agencies to “advertise its achievements and good deeds.”
Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) thanked the central government for its support of city policies since Ma took office, saying it made his job easier. With the concerted effort of the central and local governments, Hau said he believed more dreams would come eventually true.
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