Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday said that the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) plans to nominate at least 34 candidates for legislator-at-large seats in the Jan. 11 presidential and legislative elections.
While Ko has yet to confirm whether he would run for president, he has said that one of the party’s goals is to win several legislative seats.
Following the TPP’s formal establishment on Tuesday and his election as chairman, Ko said in a radio interview later in the day that the party would nominate the maximum number of candidates for 34 legislator-at-large seats, because they should have “the determination to fight across the world (征戰天下).”
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Asked by reporters to elaborate on his plans, Ko yesterday said that he did not want to repeat the New Power Party’s (NPP) strategic mistake in the 2016 legislative elections, when it only nominated six candidates for legislators-at-large.
Although the NPP had a high approval rating of more than 10 percent before the elections, many of its supporters thought that if it received more than the needed number of votes for six seats, the excess votes would be wasted, so some turned to vote for Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidates, Ko said.
He added that he also has to think of the gender equality requirement for legislators-at-large and the risks of a nominee dropping out.
The NPP caucus is facing the risk of being dissolved, as it requires three party members to form a caucus, Ko said.
He was referring to the NPP’s suspension last month of Legislator Kawlo Iyun Pacidal amid allegations of influence peddling and abuse of power.
Asked if he aims to replace the NPP in the Legislative Yuan with his party’s members, Ko said the TPP is still searching for suitable nominees, but it can only recruit new members after it receives the Ministry of the Interior’s official approval.
Winning legislative seats from constituency votes will be more difficult for the TPP, so it will focus on securing legislator-at-large seats next year, he said.
Nominees who fail to secure a seat next year can serve as assistants or office director for those who do, which should help train them for future posts, he said in the interview.
Asked if he is worried that the TPP might attract unwanted members from other parties because it allows dual-party membership, Ko said that he hopes to transcend the pan-blue and pan-green camps with this strategy, so people of either camps can exist harmoniously in society.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS