The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate for next year is likely to be identified later this month, when the party is to publish its nomination rules.
KMT Secretary-General Lee Shu-chuan (李四川) yesterday said that the party’s candidate nomination rules for next year are expected to be the same as those in the past and are to be presented to the KMT’s decisionmaking Central Standing Committee for approval on Wednesday.
The rules are to be published a week after their approval, to launch the processes for applications and endorsements for presidential hopefuls, Lee said.
This means that the issue of who will run for the ruling party could become clear after Wednesday next week.
As of yesterday, only Deputy Legislative Speaker Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) had made public her intention to run for the KMT’s nomination, although Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) and Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) are also seen as potential contenders.
Also, many KMT lawmakers have expressed hope that New Taipei City Mayor and KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) will represent the party in the upcoming presidential race against Democratic Progressive Party Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who is seeking her party’s nomination and the chance to become Taiwan’s first female head of state.
Chu is regarded as a promising presidential hopeful, even though he has continuously repeated his intention to complete his second four-year term as mayor of New Taipei City, the most populous city in the nation.
Chu won re-election in local government elections on Nov. 29 last year.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost