The New Power Party (NPP) is to nominate candidates for next year’s city and county councilor elections by the end of this year, and is to focus on the six special municipalities.
The list of candidates for the six special municipalities might include candidates for Yunlin County and Hsinchu, NPP Executive Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said during an opening ceremony of the party’s Yilan chapter, its 10th local office.
The party is also planning to field its own candidates for other cities and counties to reform the nation’s political landscape, Huang said.
Huang praised Yilan as a sacred place for Taiwan’s democracy, having given birth to revered political figures such as former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Lin I-hsiung (林義雄), former Yilan County commissioner Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊).
“Since its founding, the NPP has been inspired by Mr Lin in terms of his political integrity and values,” Huang said.
Chen Ding-nan rejected Formosa Plastics Group’s (台塑集團) proposal to build the nation’s sixth and largest naphtha cracker complex in the county, preventing air pollution and environmental issues, Huang said, adding that his integrity and diligence was an exemplar of political leadership.
The NPP is to nominate young candidates with integrity and professionalism for the county’s councilor election next year to preserve its political legacy, he said.
Although the party did not nominate any legislative candidates in the county last year, it received 13,960 votes from the constituents, contributing to its at-large seats.
Those votes provided the motivation and foundation for the party’s further development in the county, Huang said.
The NPP’s advance into Yilan is a blessing for the county, DPP Legislator Chen Ou-po (陳歐珀) said, adding that the two parties need to maintain mutually beneficial competition in the election.
Taiwan People News chairman Chen Yung-hsing (陳永興), who helped establish the Yilan chapter, said that the party has a clear set of political ideas and policy goals, which it has upheld since its election to the legislature last year.
The NPP has contributed to the reform of the National Sports Act (國民體育法) in a bid to eliminate sports associations’ monopoly over athletes and games, Chen Yung-hsing said.
Such a progressive party deserves more than 50 seats in the legislature, he said, calling on voters to support the NPP.
The party is to continue the path of reform, NPP Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) said, citing its insistence that the name “Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee” be replaced with “National Olympic Committee” in the National Sports Act.
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