Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) yesterday said the flooding caused by Typhoon Fanapi could deal a blow to Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu’s (陳菊) re-election bid in November.
Approached for comment at the legislature, Wang said “it is possible” the flooding will affect the result of November’s special municipality elections.
Wang, who doubles as chief supervisor for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Kaohsiung mayoral candidate Huang Chao-shun’s (黃昭順) campaign, said the flooding could also become an important agenda issue in the campaign.
PHOTO: CNA
On Friday, Chen outperformed Huang by 31 percentage points in an approval rating poll released by the Chinese-language China Times.
Wang’s comment came in response to speculation that the severe flooding in northern Kaohsiung could prove damaging to Chen’s re-election campaign.
However, former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), currently working as a Democratic Progressive Party election strategist, said he did not believe the city government’s response would have an impact on the election.
PHOTO: CNA
Residents living in the city’s Zuoying (左營), Nanzih (楠梓), Sanmin (楠梓) and Gushan (鼓山) districts were overwhelmed by knee-deep floodwaters caused by hours of torrential rain on Sunday.
The downpour caused the city’s most serious flooding in 50 years, bringing 1,000mm of rainfall to Kaohsiung’s plains and 1,200mm to the city’s mountainous areas.
The water in the city’s Love River and Nanzih’s Houjin River rose quickly and sharply, flooding the nearby areas and trapping residents in their houses.
PHOTO: AFP
The neighborhood of Taiwan High Speed Rail’s Zuoying Station was also seriously flooded.
Chen suspended all campaign activities yesterday and led city government officials to inspect districts seriously affected by the flooding, saying campaigning would not resume until cleanup efforts were completed.
“Our primary focus is dealing with the after-effects of the typhoon,” Chen’s campaign spokesperson, Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟), said in a short statement. “In the meantime, all election events will be postponed and our efforts will be on post-typhoon reconstruction.”
Chao also said supporters in local chapters of Chen’s campaign would be asked to volunteer with reconstruction and an original opening date for the mayor’s campaign headquarters over the weekend would be postponed indefinitely.
During her inspection trip to Nanzih and Sanmin districts, Chen was bombarded with complaints from victims of the flooding trapped on the second floor of their houses.
She apologized and blamed the flooding on the rainfall, saying the downpour exceeded the capacity of the city’s sewer and flood prevention system and caused flooding in the city’s low-lying areas.
She said it was necessary to review the systems’ design to prepare for extreme weather.
Meanwhile, Huang cut short a visit to Singapore and returned to Kaohsiung yesterday afternoon to help with the typhoon response.
Her campaign headquarters announced they would halt campaign activities and asked volunteers to help deliver food and supplies to flooded areas.
While members of Huang’s campaign team said they had heard criticism from local borough chiefs about the lack of preparation from the city government, they declined to say whether it would have an impact on the upcoming elections.
KMT spokesperson Chen Shu-jung (陳淑容) said Huang’s decision to return home showed her “strong feelings” for the Greater Kaohsiung area and that her party would fully cooperate with the relief effort and help residents return to their normal life.
Huang had planned to accompany KMT Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) from Sunday through today on the Singapore leg of his trip. King embarked on a one-week visit to Japan and Singapore on Tuesday last week to promote party diplomacy.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY KO SHU-LING
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man