Meeting recruitment goals for legislator-at-large candidates has proved impossible, New Power Party (NPP) officials said yesterday, adding that the party would only nominate five or six at-large candidates, rather than eight as originally planned.
“There were difficulties as we consulted with prospective candidates, with many people unable to get the consent of their families,” NPP Secretary-General Chen Hui-min (陳惠敏) said.
Any candidate nominated by the party needs to demonstrate long-term perseverance and experience pushing for reform in their particular field, she said, adding that the party’s main objective was to nominate candidates who could “cover” issues for which its district candidates lacked expertise.
The party is to introduce its final legislative candidates today, including National Taiwan University economics professor Jang Show-ling (鄭秀玲), as well as another possible candidate who has yet to formally accept, she said.
The party yesterday introduced Soochow University political science professor Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明), with previously announced candidates including Aboriginal activist Kawlo Iyun Pacidal, renowned theater director Ko I-chen (柯一正), and Hondao Senior Citizens Welfare Foundation chief executive Doris Lin (林依瑩).
Of the candidates currently announced, only Hsu, who also heads the party’s policy working group, is an active party official.
He said at-large candidates would present their policy stances in a series of events this week, including two televised presentations tomorrow and on Thursday, followed by three sessions over the weekend.
Online voting is to begin on Monday next week and continue until Nov. 19, with party officials previously stating that voting would be open to anyone who has formally registered as a “friend of the NPP,” in addition to party members who have paid dues.
Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said that permitting party voting for the at-large legislative list rankings was necessary in order to prevent parties from protecting unpopular politicians by placing them high on at-large lists.
Party leaders have actively endorsed Kawlo Iyun Pacidal, urging voters to place her in the party’s top slot.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
An exhibition celebrating Taiwan and Japan’s comic culture opened on Saturday in Taichung, featuring a section that explores Taiwanese reproductions of Japanese comics from when martial law limited Japanese representation. “A Century of Manga Culture: An Encounter of Taiwan and Japan’s Youth” held its Taiwan opening ceremony at Taichung’s National Taiwan Museum of Comics after an initial one-month run in Japan’s Kyoto International Manga Museum between May 24 and June 24. Much like the Kyoto exhibition, the show mainly celebrates the comic connection between Taiwan and Japan through late Taiwanese comic book