President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday slammed the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for “spreading rumors against him,” urging party members to be cautious about smear campaigns, while pledging to run a positive election campaign.
Ma, who is seeking re-election in January, made the comments during a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Central Standing Committee meeting in Greater Tainan yesterday.
Presiding over the committee, Ma, who doubles as KMT chairman, warned local members about negative campaigning in the face of a neck-to-neck battle ahead of the elections and denied having met a local bookmaker in Chiayi in September.
Photo: CNA
“We are facing a tough battle in both the presidential and legislative elections, and our opponents will launch more smear campaigns against us. We should take more cautious measures and prevent such negative campaigning from affecting the party’s performance in the elections,” he said.
Ma on Monday filed a defamation suit against the DPP for spreading what he described as an unfounded report claiming that he met with underground bookmaker Chen Ying-chu (陳盈助) on Sept. 10 to raise campaign funds totaling NT$300 million (US$9.9 million).
The allegations were first made in a story in Chinese-language Next Magazine last week. While the Presidential Office, Ma’s re-election campaign office and the KMT have denied the allegations, the DPP used the report to criticize Ma.
In related news, the KMT yesterday completed the registration process for its legislator-at-large candidates with the Central Election Commission.
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), who tops the KMT’s 34-nominee list, and KMT -Secretary-General Liao Liao-yi (廖了以) led the party’s candidates in registering with the CEC.
Wang said the KMT’s nomination list received a positive public response for its inclusion of representatives from disadvantaged groups and experts in various fields, and that the party was seeking to win 20 legislator-at-large seats.
“Of course we hope the safe list could be longer and that the candidates will be fully cooperative with the party’s election campaign strategies,” he said.
Child Welfare League Foundation executive director Alicia Wang (王育敏) and Taiwan Organization for Disadvantaged Patients secretary-general Yang Yu-hsing (楊玉欣) also attended the registration and said, should they be elected they would dedicate their efforts to protect the rights of disadvantaged groups in the legislature.
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
Reports of Taiwanese going missing, being detained or interrogated, or having their personal liberties restricted in China increased about fourfold annually last year, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Last year, 221 Taiwanese who traveled to China were reported missing, were detained and interrogated, or otherwise had their personal freedom restricted, up from 55 the previous year, the council said. Reopening group tours to China would be risky, as it would leave travelers with no way to seek help through official channels after Beijing shut down dialogue between the associations tasked with handling cross-strait tourism, the MAC said. Taipei’s Taiwan Strait Tourism
SHIFT: Taiwan is evolving from a transit stop into a tourist destination, with more international travelers willing to spend on tours, dining and cultural activities Taiwan rose three places in the World Tourism Barometer to 36th globally in 2024, with international tourism revenue of US$10.028 billion, the Tourism Administration said on Monday. The UN Tourism Organization publication said that its focus has switched from whether a country has returned to pre-COVID-19 levels of tourism to the amount spent by a tourist during an overseas trip. The nation last year welcomed 8.57 million international tourists, about 9 percent more than in 2024, with most tourists coming from Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong and Macau, all of which accounted for at least 1 million tourists each. During the first
RSS