Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), who is also the chairman of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), yesterday in Prague, Czech Republic, said that TPP legislator-at-large-elect Tsai Pi-ju’s (蔡璧如) remark that the party would form an alliance of opposition party caucuses in the Legislative Yuan is inaccurate, as it intends to form a “people’s alliance.”
The TPP won 11.2 percent of party votes in Saturday’s legislative elections, passing the 5 percent threshold and securing five legislator-at-large seats.
Tsai on Monday said that the party plans to form an alliance with other opposition parties — the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the New Power Party (NPP) — in the Legislative Yuan to closely monitor the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Photo courtesy of the Taipei City Government
KMT caucus whip William Tseng (曾銘宗) on Tuesday said that the KMT is open to the idea, but cooperation with the TPP would depend on whether the two parties agree on certain issues, adding that they could start from economic issues.
“Chickens and rabbits cannot share the same cage,” NPP Chairman Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said on Tuesday, adding that cooperation should be based on sharing similar ideals and values, but the NPP and the KMT do not share the same fundamental values, and the NPP does not know the TPP’s direction yet, so it is too soon to speak about the possibility of forming an alliance.
Independent Legislator Freddy Lim (林昶佐) said the TPP was formed last year and is about to enter the Legislative Yuan, but it does not have a clear stance regarding its main ideals as well as many issues, such as national security and foreign relations, adding that forming an alliance without shared ideals would amount to political manipulation.
Ko, speaking with Taiwanese reporters in Prague, said that the term “an alliance of opposition parties” is inaccurate, because the TPP wants to avoid conflict between ideologies and focus on solving people’s livelihood issues, so it should rather be called a “people’s alliance.”
Asked about speculation that the TPP is apparently a member of the pan-blue camp, Ko said the party does not want to be categorized by the blue-green divide, and that it would discuss issues that are beneficial to the public, adding that it can cooperate with the KMT, the DPP or any other party as long as the proposals are reasonable.
Tsai and TPP legislators would bring the experience they gained in the Taipei City Government, as well as their credo that the government should be open and transparent, to the Legislative Yuan, Ko said.
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
RSS