Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday repeated his call for President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to “fulfil the people’s expectations” by issuing a direct executive order to suspend construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Tapei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮).
The anti-nuclear movement has been “a national campaign which transcends competition between political parties and is more than a political issue,” Su told an anti-nuclear symposium organized by the DPP’s Democracy Institute, citing strong public support for the movement against finishing the plant’s construction.
By ordering the suspension of the plant’s construction, the nation would be able to take advantage of the global economic recovery and revive its own economy, Su said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
A public opinion survey conducted by the DPP’s Poll Center showed that more than 70 percent of respondents — 60 percent of which identified themselves as pan-blue camp supporters — favored suspending the project.
It would be a waste of time and government resources to spend the remainder of the year debating a national referendum to decide the fate of the plant, Su said.
The DPP chairman said that Ma was misleading the people by saying that issuing an executive order to halt constrcution of the plant would be unconstitutional because the Constitutional Court’s grand justices said legislative approval would be the legal basis for suspension.
The DPP has no intention of making the issue a competition against the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), the chairman said.
If the KMT insists on proceeding with its national referendum proposal, the DPP would have no choice but to engage in a “referendum war” and try to mobilize more than 9 million voters to participate in the poll, Su said.
“Never underestimate the power of the people and their determination to stop the construction of the nuclear power plant,” Su said.
ENTERTAINERS IN CHINA: Taiwanese generally back the government being firm on infiltration and ‘united front’ work,’ the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association said Most people support the government probing Taiwanese entertainers for allegedly “amplifying” the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda, a survey conducted by the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association showed on Friday. Public support stood at 56.4 percent for action by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Ministry of Culture to enhance scrutiny on Taiwanese performers and artists who have developed careers in China while allegedly adhering to the narrative of Beijing’s propaganda that denigrates or harms Taiwanese sovereignty, the poll showed. Thirty-three percent did not support the action, it showed. The poll showed that 51.5 percent of respondents supported the government’s investigation into Taiwanese who have
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
A Philippine official has denied allegations of mistreatment of crew members during Philippine authorities’ boarding of a Taiwanese fishing vessel on Monday. Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) spokesman Nazario Briguera on Friday said that BFAR law enforcement officers “observed the proper boarding protocols” when they boarded the Taiwanese vessel Sheng Yu Feng (昇漁豐號) and towed it to Basco Port in the Philippines. Briguera’s comments came a day after the Taiwanese captain of the Sheng Yu Feng, Chen Tsung-tun (陳宗頓), held a news conference in Pingtung County and accused the Philippine authorities of mistreatment during the boarding of
88.2 PERCENT INCREASE: The variants driving the current outbreak are not causing more severe symptoms, but are ‘more contagious’ than previous variants, an expert said Number of COVID-19 cases in the nation is surging, with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) describing the ongoing wave of infections as “rapid and intense,” and projecting that the outbreak would continue through the end of July. A total of 19,097 outpatient and emergency visits related to COVID-19 were reported from May 11 to Saturday last week, an 88.2 percent increase from the previous week’s 10,149 visits, CDC data showed. The nearly 90 percent surge in case numbers also marks the sixth consecutive weekly increase, although the total remains below the 23,778 recorded during the same period last year,
RSS