President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday denied meeting privately with bookie Chen Ying-chu (陳盈助) in Chiayi in September, slamming Next Magazine for carrying the story and accusing the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of spreading the allegations without evidence.
In an interview with ETTV, Ma defended his integrity and said he did not meet with Chen on Sept. 10 during a campaign visit to Chiayi.
“The magazine made a false accusation and the DPP jumped on the bandwagon to spread the rumors. This is a vicious culture,” he said.
Allegations of a meeting between Ma and Chen were made on Wednesday when an article in Next Magazine said that the president had held a private meeting with Chen in which he asked for a donation of NT$300 million (US$9.9 million).
The Presidential Office, Ma’s re-election campaign office and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) have all denied the allegations. On Thursday, the KMT threatened to take legal action against the magazine.
Amid the allegations and a neck-and-neck race with DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Ma yesterday said he remained confident about his re-election bid even with People First Party Chairman James Soong’s (宋楚瑜) participation in the presidential election.
“I still believe that I will be re-elected even if Chairman Soong refuses to withdraw from the race … The differences between Chairperson Tsai and myself are pretty obvious, and I believe the people will choose me in the election,” he said.
The possibility of signing a peace agreement with China, Ma added, is a point of consideration because the issue will inevitably arise in the next decade, and as president, he should not avoid addressing the topic and must present a long-term plan to maintain peace and prosperity.
“I care about Taiwan’s peace and the lives of the people, their economic situation. I do not just care about my turnout in the election,” he added.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday briefed her party’s Central Standing Committee regarding her scheduled visit to the US between Monday next week and June 16, saying that her purpose would be to persuade the US that the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution was a “one China” constitution that would foster stable and peaceful cross-strait relations. The ROC Constitution is the most important defense for all Taiwanese citizens, as it upholds our democracy and has contributed to our robust economy, which aligns with international and US interests, she said. “We would not be troublemakers and drag the US under,”
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