Following recent reports about Paul the German oracle octopus and his predictions for the soccer World Cup, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilors yesterday brought two octopuses to the Taipei City Council to predict the winner in November's Taipei mayoral election.
During a question-and-answer session with Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌), DPP Taipei City councilors Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄), Huang Hsiang-chun (黃向群) and Liu Yao-ren (劉耀仁) prepared a tank with two plastic boxes inside, one with Hau's photo and one with a photo of his DPP opponent, former premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌).
The first octopus to be dropped into the water tank quickly moved to the box with Hau's picture and embraced the box with its tentacles, attracting a round of laughter and applause from city government officials.
PHOTO: HUANG CHUNG-JUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
The second octopus, however, moved to Su's picture and was followed by the first octopus, still holding the box with Hau's picture.
“Apparently, the octopus predicts that Su will win the mayoral election. Mayor Hau, with the forecast and your low support rate, I think you should be worried about the election's results,” Chuang said.
Hau played down the forecast and said he was confident he would win the Nov. 27 election.
“It's clear that he [the first octopus] chose my picture. He grabbed my box tightly,” Hau said.
Hau also accused the DPP councilors of animal abuse after Chuang tried to affect the octopus' choice with a long stick.
“It's an act of animal abuse and you are killing the octopuses by putting them in an environment that is not suitable for them,” Hau said.
Paul the octopus became a superstar after accurately predicting the winner of the World Cup and the outcome of all six of Germany's World Cup matches.
Chuang said the octopuses were purchased at a fish market and would be freed after the session.
Yen I-feng (嚴一峰), director of Taipei City's Animal Protection Office, said the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法) only includes regulations on vertebrates. Octopuses and other invertebrates are not protected by the act.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City councilors later joined Hau in accusing the DPP councilors of abusing the octopuses and using the animals for political show.
“I think the question-and-answer session should focus on the discussion of municipal policies and Hau's performance. The octopus show is nothing but a hoax,” KMT Taipei City Councilor Dai Hsi-chin (戴錫欽) said.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS