Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) last night wrapped up “Super Weekend” ahead of Saturday’s presidential election with two large rallies in the north, saying that she is confident the party is inching closer to victory.
Tsai kicked off the weekend in her hometown in Pingtung County on Saturday and traveled through southern, central and northern parts of the country, canvassing the streets during the day and organizing six large rallies at night, hoping to consolidate voter support.
The DPP campaign received a boost of confidence from -enthusiastic support for Tsai’s motorcade, which traversed the DPP strongholds of Greater Tainan and Greater Kaohsiung. Campaign aides said turnout was solid, with 100,000 rally participants in Greater Tainan and 20,000 in Lujhu (路竹), Greater Kaohsiung, on Saturday; while yesterday 30,000 turned out in Fengyuan (豐原), Greater Taichung, and -Yuanlin (員林), Changhua County; and 150,000 in Taipei.
Photo: Liao Yau-tung, Taipei Times
Tsai began yesterday morning by crossing Greater Tainan by motorcade, before staging two rallies in central Taiwan in the afternoon and two more rallies in the north at night.
Speaking in Fengyuan, the DPP chairperson said she recognized the pivotal role that central Taiwan would play in the election, calling the region “the most crucial constituency in the nation” and said she hoped to secure more than half of the votes there.
In a speech yesterday morning in Greater Tainan, Tsai reiterated that her administration would do its best to advance consociational democracy and a grand coalition government — which would mean that “the premier would not necessarily be a DPP member” — by launching party-to-party talks.
She added she would also work with the new legislature and its new speaker, scheduled to be sworn in on Feb. 1, to review the national budget and to cut back on meaningless, inefficient and overspending projects.
The DPP also focused on countering what it said were improper campaign strategies that were used by the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) over the weekend, such as illegal mobilization, breach of administrative neutrality, potential vote-buying and the playing of the “stability card.”
While President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), seeking re-election for the KMT, repeated that stability would be lost without the so-called “1992 consensus” and a change of regime, Tsai said that was not the case and that Ma’s interpretation of stability was way off base.
“Stability means people wake up in the morning knowing that they have a job, have a house to live in when they get off work and can put food on the table,” Tsai said in Greater Tainan on Saturday, adding that for a lot of people, Ma has fallen short of this task.
“Stability also means a government which distributes its resources fairly and respects the legislature and the opposition, and Ma did not accomplish that either,” she said.
Most importantly, she added, stability is not enough to sustain a society without consensus, which was why she advocates the formulation of a “Taiwan consensus.”
“Instability would not happen because of the lack of the ‘1992 consensus,’ but it would because of the lack of a democratic process that does not consult people’s opinion,” Tsai said.
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old