Former death row inmates Su Chien-ho (蘇建和) and Chuang Lin-hsun (莊林勳) yesterday appeared at a press conference to support lawyer Wellington Koo (顧立雄), who is seeking the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) nomination as its candidate for the year-end Taipei mayoral election.
Su, Chuang and Liu Bin-lang (劉秉郎), dubbed the “Hsichih Trio,” had been embroiled in a case spanning two decades in which they had been accused of robbing and murdering Wu Min-han (吳銘漢) and Yeh Ying-lan (葉盈蘭) in March 1991. The three were represented by Koo in court and were found not guilty on Aug. 31, 2012, marking the end of the case.
Su yesterday said he has known Koo for more than 13 years, adding that Koo is a good man who is serious and careful in his actions, who always keeps an eye out for the disadvantaged and supports social causes.
Photo: CNA
Koo helped the disadvantaged and the poor voluntarily, Su said, adding that he was not the only person who had received Koo’s kind-hearted help.
Su said that as a Taiwanese, Koo felt he should also pay attention to political issues, adding that he felt that Koo would be an excellent mayor.
At the press conference held to introduce his campaign advisers, Koo screened three campaign videos criticizing the Taipei City Government’s urban renewal project.
He said that the city government had “been all hot air and no action” under both President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), when he was Taipei mayor, and Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌).
Koo said the city government’s decision to spend NT$200 million (US$6.6 million) to remove and rebuild what is now Jiancheng Circle (建成圓環) in 2001 was a bad one, referring perhaps to the subsequent shutdown of the area’s commercial activities due to a lawsuit, and their eventual reopening in 2012.
Koo promised that if he was elected, he would solve the problem of buildings standing empty and derelict, and make well-planned housing policies.
He said that he would let residents of the city live with dignity in a quality environment.
Koo also said he would rebuild the Jiancheng Circle and again turn it into a favored tourist hotspot, as well as demolish bus-only lanes on Zhongxiao West Road to restore safety and traffic convenience.
Among the first people named to Koo’s team of advisers are Alliance for Handicapped People secretary-general Wang Jung-chang (王榮璋), Humanistic Education Foundation chairman Shih Ying (史英), former minister of finance Lin Chuan (林全), former Judicial Yuan secretary-general Fan Kuang-chun (范光群), author Ping Lu (平路), Academia Sinica research fellow Hu Sheng-cheng (胡勝正), Human Rights Covenants Watch convener Kao Yung-cheng (高涌誠), former Public Television Service Foundation president and chief executive Sylvia Feng (馮賢賢), Consumers’ Foundation chairwoman Joann Su (蘇錦霞), feminist activist Chen Chao-ju (陳昭如) and National Health Insurance Civic Surveillance Alliance spokesperson Eva Teng (滕西華).
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS