Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday said he remains open to cooperation between the KMT and the People First Party (PFP) in next year’s presidential election, adding that he would “not give up until the end.”
Both parties are striving for the good of Taiwan and “the vendettas of the last generation” should be resolved through “sincere communication,” Chu said, adding that he has done a great deal of work “under the table,” which “must remain unknown” to the public.
Chu made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding comments made on Monday by PFP presidential candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜), who said he has been “pining for the word” on a pan-blue alliance, but that the issue “depends on the KMT.”
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
According to the latest survey of presidential candidates released by the Taiwan Thinktank on Monday, Democratic Progressive Party Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) maintains her lead (47 percent) over both Soong and KMT presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), with Hung at 16 percent and Soong at 13 percent.
Soong yesterday observed World Car-Free Day by riding public transportation, using the occasion to reiterate his stance on nuclear energy.
“A nuclear-free home is our common goal,” he said, promising, if elected, to conduct a new round of safety inspections at the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Gongliao District (貢寮).
Meanwhile, Hung yesterday unveiled her public housing policy.
If elected, she said she would dedicate an annual budget of between NT$20 billion and NT$25 billion (US$606.6 million and US$758.2 million) to set up a “National Housing Service,” which would provide housing subsidies to families with at least one income-earner regardless of the number of dependents.
Applicant priority would be determined through a system of eligibility “points” rather than lottery, with applicants’ personal accounts in the national labor pension fund providing the down payment for mortgages, Hung said.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
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