The People First Party (PFP) — apart from a plan to hold three large-scale rallies in southern, central and northern Taiwan — has also decided to emphasize its campaign focus in central Taiwan, party officials said yesterday.
According to the PFP, central Taiwan was the headquarters of PFP presidential candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜) when he was provincial governor, so the PFP has many contacts in central Taiwan.
Aside from Hualien, Soong and his running mate, Lin Ruey-shiung (林瑞雄), would be able to garner a considerable amount of votes in the central part of the country, they said.
The PFP’s national campaign headquarters has designated Jan. 7 for the first rally, which will be held on the plaza opposite Greater Tainan’s “Flower Garden” night market, while the second rally will be held at the 228 Memorial Park in Taipei on Jan. 11 and the last in Greater Taichung the night of Jan. 13.
PFP officials said there was no need to mobilize transport for supporters attending the second rally.
While central Taiwan has been perceived by both the Democratic Progressive Party and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) as the key deciding factor in the Jan. 14 presidential election, the PFP would also do its utmost to win as many votes as possible in the region, they said.
In response to questions on whether the PFP, a KMT splinter group that formed after the 2000 presidential election, would pose a threat to the KMT, PFP officials said that given the two parties were independent parties, winning the election was a matter of each of their own efforts.
If the KMT’s votes are siphoned away by the PFP, then the KMT is the one that should reflect on the cause, PFP officials said.
Translated by Jake Chung, staff writer
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese