Former Council of Agriculture deputy minister Weng Chang-liang (翁章梁) yesterday won the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) primary election for the Chiayi County commissioner race, with the party scheduled to officially approve his nomination on Wednesday next week.
The result of three telephone opinion surveys conducted by three polling agencies on Monday showed that Weng had a combined support rating of 43.77 percent, while Chiayi County Council Speaker Chang Ming-ta (張明達) garnered 35.36 percent.
The result was not a surprise as Weng had led Chang by about 5 percentage points in previous opinion polls.
Photo: CNA
Weng, a member of the 1990 Wild Lily student movement, was Chiayi County Social Affairs Bureau director for 11 years before becoming a deputy minister.
Asking Chang’s supporters to back him in the Nov. 24 elections, Weng called for unity among the DPP.
“Everyone is urged to stay united. Bickering and provocative statements should be avoided. Humility, restraint and unity are necessary to achieve election victory,” he said.
Chang’s and Weng’s campaign teams on Monday had accused each other of interfering with the polling process.
In a news conference in Chiayi City, Chang’s team said their supporters received “fake” telephone calls, during which a tape recording was playing asking listeners to respond to a set of polling questions, while the real survey was conducted by people.
Chang’s team accused Weng’s team of making the fake calls to keep the phone lines of Chang supporters tied up so they could not receive calls from the real polling agencies.
It asked the DPP and the judiciary to investigate the alleged election violation, adding that legal action would be taken over any illegal practice that might affect Chang’s chances.
DPP Legislator Tsai Yi-yu (蔡易餘), the director of Weng’s campaign team, said his group did not make such phone calls, adding that Weng’s supporters had received similar calls, which were believed to have come from Chang’s side.
Tsai also accused former DPP legislator Lin Kuo-ching (林國慶), a Chang supporter, of trying to influence the opinion polls by disseminating false polling information.
Chiayi County Commissioner Helen Chang (張花冠), who supported Chang Ming-ta’s bid, urged the DPP to restore party solidarity following the divisive primary to ensure the party’s victory in November.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS