Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) is not a “political amateur” or a “common civilian,” but is part of a political family, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said yesterday.
Ko first made the remark in a TV interview on Tuesday night, during which he was asked to comment on two Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential hopefuls, Han and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘), who are being labeled by some as “the common civilian” and “the rich and powerful” respectively.
Han claimed to be a political amateur when running for mayor last year, stressing that he was “down-to-earth” and would push for a better “common civilian economy.”
Photo provided by ETTV News
“Is Gou from a rich and powerful family? He was born in a common family,” Ko said. “And you call Han Kuo-yu a common civilian? Come on, his wife and her family members have been county councilors for more than 50 years in total.”
When asked to elaborate yesterday, Ko said: “Han’s wife is from a political family. She, her father and her younger brother have all been Yulin County councilors for more than 50 years if you add them together, and Han has been a legislator for three terms and the deputy mayor of then-Zhonghe City.”
“So how can he be called a ‘political amateur’?” Ko said. “He is already part of a political family.”
When asked in the interview about Han’s idea that he could focus on his mayoral duties from Monday to Friday and run for president on weekends, Ko said he often works from 7am to 11pm every day with no clear definition between working and after-work hours.
“Common civilian” is a kind of mindset for politicians, and does not actually refer to the person’s background or how many years they have been a politician, Han said yesterday.
Ko also said that China is no longer like North Korea and has progressed, becoming become more like Singapore, so Taiwan should encourage it to continue progressing toward democracy and freedom, maybe at a gradual pace such as former president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) prescribed.
President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) cross-strait policy is on a slippery slope, meaning that it was poorly handled initially, so now it has become more tense and unsolvable, Ko said, adding that a gesture of kindness toward China is needed.
Asked if his idea of “standing with the US and Japan and being friendly to China” differs from former president Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) foreign policy, Ko said the KMT’s problem lies in its “comprador culture,” because people are not upset about doing business with China, they are actually upset about the KMT being the only one that profits from exchanges with China.
Ko was asked if his remarks encouraging China to become democratized might obstruct the annual Taipei-Shanghai forum planned for next month.
He said that China has improved a lot since the Cultural Revolution, but it can still become even better, and that he believes “mutual understanding” between Taiwan and China is very important.
Asked if China has ever tried to force him to declare his stance on the so-called “1992 consensus” at the Taipei-Shanghai forum, Ko said: “I am not a Chinese Nationalist Party member, so I think they have a different standard for me.”
The so-called “1992 consensus,” a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000, refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese government that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
RSS