William Lai (賴清德) took the oath yesterday and was sworn in as the first mayor of the new special municipality of Greater Tainan, pledging to restore Tainan to its former glory in an effort to capitalize on its historic and cultural importance.
“We hereby welcome the new birth of this city,” he said in his inaugural speech, adding that the merger of Tainan City and Tainan County into Greater Tainan will allow the new municipality to use its unique features to transform itself into a special city.
Minister without Portfolio Ovid Tzeng (曾志朗) presided over the swearing-in ceremony of the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) rising star.
In his 13-minute speech, Lai expressed his gratitude to former Tainan mayor Hsu Tain-tsair (許添財) and former Tainan County commissioner Su Huan-chih (蘇煥智) for their work during the past nine years.
However, neither Hsu nor Su made an appearance at the ceremony.
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), former premier Yu Shyi-kun and former Presidential Office secretary-general Mark Chen (陳唐山) were also on hand to witness the event as special guests.
On his last day in office on Friday, Su hosted a farewell party at the County Hall and said “Tainan County” will always stay in the hearts of its residents.
Hsu, meanwhile, said he has set up an office called “Hsu Tain-tsair Office” and will continue to care for issues that pertain to people’s well-being and happiness.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
RSS