With two days to go until election day, independent Taipei mayor candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday took a tour of seven symbolic locations around the city, vowing to bring about change for a better future if he wins the race for the capital tomorrow.
Starting his tour at Longshan Temple (龍山寺) in Wanhua District (萬華) — one of the city’s oldest temples in one of its earliest Han Chinese settlements — Ko then moved on to Chiang Wei-shui (蔣渭水) Memorial Park, which commemorates Chiang, a physician and social activist during the Japanese colonial period.
Afterward, Ko took a boat ride to Guandu (關渡) in Beitou District (北投), the westernmost borough of Taipei, before going on to the northernmost one, Hutien Borough (湖田), nestled in the mountains in Beitou. The mayoral hopeful also stopped by Nangang District’s (南港) Jiuzhuang Borough (舊莊), Taipei’s the easternmost borough, and Wenshan District’s (文山) Zhinan Borough (指南), before concluding the tour in Xinyi District (信義) at the foot of Taipei 101.
“Today, we are ending the tour at Four Four South Village [四四南村], the first military dependents’ quarter in the city, which has Taipei 101 — the nation’s tallest building right behind it,” Ko told a crowd of supporters and journalists.
“The Four Four South Village represents our past differences, Taipei 101 is what we share in the present and on election day on Nov. 29 [tomorrow] we will choose if we will move toward a future with solidarity and harmony,” he added.
The speech triggered a round of cheers and applause from supporters, who chanted for Ko’s victory.
Throughout the tour, Ko was surrounded by enthusiastic supporters, with people cheering and clapping him along, shaking hands with him, and asking for his autograph and picture.
Along the trip, Ko met with local leaders and academics, listening to their suggestions on city governance.
During the boat ride from Dadaocheng (大稻埕) to Guandu on Tamsui River (淡水河), Ko listened to a lecture and heard suggestions about promoting cruise tours on the river.
In Zhinan, a well-known tea-growing area, he also listened to local business leaders about the challenges they have encountered in developing local tourism and the tea industry.
Standing in front of a statue of Chiang in the park dedicated to him, Ko delivered a speech that saw him get choked up at one point when he mentioned accusations that his father and grandfather were “‘Japanized’ imperial subjects.”
“Only when we see the city’s residents living side by side as brothers and sisters will we all be equal. Only when we all stop stigmatizing and attacking political rivals and their families will Taiwan become a civilized society,” Ko said. “My goal in this election is to continue Chiang’s fight to create a free, equal, civilized, united and harmonious society.”
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