Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Eric Chu (朱立倫) is hoping that the notorious mob boss in this year's blockbuster movie Monga (艋舺) will help entice more than a few voters his way come election day on Nov. 27.
Veteran actor Ma Ju-long (馬如龍), who has captured the audience's interest with his recent portrayal of the character Geta in the film Monga, yesterday endorsed the KMT candidate, telling supporters that “it would be Taiwan's loss” if Chu did not win the elections for Sinbei City mayor.
The two men spoke to local residents and party stalwarts at the office of KMT Taipei County Councilor Huang Kui-lan (黃桂蘭) in Taipei County's Lujhou (蘆洲).
PHOTO: WANG YI-SUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Ma said he believed Chu was best suited to govern the nation's most populous municipality.
He also mentioned Chu's impressive record during his eight years as county commissioner of Taoyuan County, where he used to live.
“I still have friends there and many of them tell me just how well Chu did in the area. That's the main reason why I’m here today,” Ma said.
Recent polls suggest that Chu is neck-and-neck with his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) opponent, Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
DPP Chairperson Tsai yesterday held a press conference to announce that her campaign had received more than NT$10 million (US$315,000) in donations, calling it a testament to her grassroots support.
Standing alongside a dozen teenagers and young adults at her campaign headquarters in Banciao City, Tsai said she recognized that the donations represented the hopes and aspirations of hundreds of Taipei County residents.
Thanking supporters, she said: “[Grassroots] donations are the next step in political culture. I hope even more people take part in this election.”
The donations will undoubtedly come as a big boost for Tsai after a string of recent announcements from the cash-strapped DPP that it would not offer individual candidates financial support in the year-end elections.
Tsai's campaign office has said it will focus on maximizing the use of the limited resources at its disposal and not spend money on printing election banners, flyers or posters. Tsai’s office also promised not to use loudspeakers on campaign vehicles.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
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