Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) is to hold his first official rally as the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate on Sunday, his campaign office said yesterday.
The rally is to take place in New Taipei City’s Xingfu Shuiyang Park (幸福水漾公園), but New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) and former mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) are not expected to attend because of scheduling conflicts, the office said.
“The rally will be the first held by Han’s campaign office,” said Hsu Shu-hua (許淑華), deputy chief executive of Han’s Taipei campaign office.
Photo: CNA
During the KMT presidential primary, Han staged five rallies organized by his supporters, with the last one on July 8 in Hsinchu, she said.
New Taipei City was chosen as the site for his first official rally, because it is his birthplace, she said, adding that the last rally is to be held in Kaohsiung.
The Sunday rally, which is to be held from 4pm to 9pm, will feature musical performances and speeches by former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), she said.
Former Taipei County commissioners Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋) and Lin Fong-cheng (林豐正), former New Taipei City deputy mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) and all KMT legislative candidates for the city are to attend the rally, she said.
The office also invited former KMT chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and is still waiting for her answer, she added.
Earlier yesterday, when asked about Han’s rally, Hou said his schedule is “very full” and he must prioritize municipal affairs.
As the mayor, his responsibilities to the city’s 4 million residents are far more urgent, he added.
Chu’s office on Wednesday said that the former KMT chairman would be visiting Japan on the day of the rally, adding that the trip had been arranged last month.
Asked if she is worried about the absence of Hou and Chu, Hsu said that she is more concerned about the turnout.
Han has been very nervous about the rally and asked her if it would attract many people, Hsu said in an interview with Pop Radio.
“Since we are organizing the rally, the mayor has put a lot of thought into it and hopes to see that his supporters have not left him,” she said.
“This event is of key importance to us,” she said, adding that her goal is to attract at least 200,000 people.
While recent public opinion polls showed Han losing support, surveys conducted by his team indicate that his support rate remained at about 30 percent, she said.
Han’s support rate did not decline, but President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) increased because of the anti-extradition bill protests in Hong Kong, she said.
As not every survey is accurate, she has told Han’s supporters to stop paying attention to poll results, she added.
Additional reporting by Chou Hsiang-yi
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
RSS