President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday began a series of intensive meetings with Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers, as he sought to heal the rift caused by the party’s much-criticized revocation of Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng’s (王金平) membership over allegations of illegal lobbying.
Ma and Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) both appealed for “party unity,” urging lawmakers “to refrain from giving the Democratic Progressive Party [DPP] an opportunity that it can take advantage of,” KMT Policy Committee chief executive Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) said after a meeting.
The meeting between KMT government officials and lawmakers was held yesterday afternoon to consolidate the party’s position on various issues that will be tackled when the new legislative session starts today.
In a departure from past practice, Wang was not invited to the meeting. The KMT said this was because his party membership has been rescinded — although the Taipei District Court has granted Wang’s injunction against the party’s move to revoke his membership and invalidate his status as head of the legislature.
About 50 lawmakers — out of the total 63 — showed up for the meeting, but a number of them just signed in and left. Only 10 spoke out unbidden at the meeting.
KMT Legislator Lin Te-fu (林德福) said Ma dismissed conspiracy theories that he went after Wang because of a plot seeking his ouster and rebutted criticism characterizing the incident as a political struggle between Wang and him.
Despite divisions among KMT lawmakers over the case, there was a consensus that “the KMT caucus would continue its support for President Ma” while showing their “respect for Speaker Wang,” Lin Te-fu said.
A number of KMT lawmakers close to Wang — including Wong Chung-chun (翁重鈞), Wang Hui-mei (王惠美), Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) and Lu Chia-chen (盧嘉辰), who all showed up at the airport on Tuesday last week to greet Wang on his return from an overseas trip to Malaysia where he attended his daughter’s wedding — were absent from the meeting.
Ma also began to hold small group discussions with KMT lawmakers last night, Presidential Office spokesperson Li Chia-fei (李佳霏) said.
The 63 KMT lawmakers were divided into seven groups to have dinner with Ma beginning last night to seek their views on the Wang issue, Li 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