The Executive Yuan has selected former Kaohsiung City Government secretary-general Yang Ming-jou (楊明州) as Kaohsiung acting mayor, sources with knowledge of the matter said yesterday.
Yang, an independent, was chosen due to his vast experience in handling municipal affairs and because he was not affiliated with the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the sources said.
Yang was acceptable to the pan-blue and pan-green camps, easing tensions in preparation for a Kaohsiung mayoral by-election after Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) was recalled on Saturday last week, they said.
Photo: Ko Yu-hao, Taipei Times
With the typhoon season approaching, Yang has the experience to facilitate rescue and flood relief missions, they said.
His experience in municipal affairs also makes him an ideal acting mayor as the Kaohsiung City Council begins a month-long intensive question-and-answer session on Friday next week, they added.
Yang, who has served in the Kaohsiung City Government for 36 years, started his career as an engineer at the city’s Public Works Bureau, before moving up the ranks to become head of the bureau and later deputy mayor under former Kaohsiung mayor Chen Chu (陳菊).
After Han took office on Dec. 25, 2018, Yang was transferred to the post of Kaohsiung City Government secretary-general, before being demoted to his current position as city government counselor.
Asked to comment on the purported appointment, Yang said that a civil servant cannot choose his “battlefield,” and that he would respect his superiors’ decision.
In related developments, DPP Kaohsiung City Councilor Kao Min-lin (高閔琳) on Wednesday said that she would not support DPP Vice Premier Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) becoming acting mayor.
Chen Chi-mai, a popular candidate for the post, would likely join the Kaohsiung mayoral by-election in three months, so it would create a conflict of interest if he was appointed acting mayor, Kao said.
Appointing Chen Chi-mai, who lost to Han in the 2018 Kaohsiung mayoral election, would further aggravate Han’s supporters and give the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) an excuse to deepen rifts in society, she said.
The DPP seems to have arrived at a consensus to back Chen Chi-mai in the by-election, so it should give him time to focus on his campaign rather than taking on a role likely preoccupied with floods, she added.
PROTECTION: The New Taipei City mayor said a pass could cover stores, but not eateries, while Ko Wen-je said vaccinated people could be exempted from some rules Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) on Saturday proposed implementing a “COVID-19 pass” regulation that would allow only vaccinated people into certain areas. New Taipei City is planning to require a “COVID-19 pass” for entry to “vulnerable spaces” to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Hou said. Non-students entering elementary schools in New Taipei City are required to show their COVID-19 vaccination cards or proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test. This is for the protection of students under the age of 12, who are not eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, city officials have said. The
PAPERS, PLEASE: A digital certificate or a printout would return one of three results: green for ‘pass,’ red for ‘not passed’ or yellow for ‘to be determined,’ the CECC said Starting today, people can download a Digital COVID-19 Certificate, with the government now requiring people at night clubs, karaoke bars and other businesses in “eight major special establishment categories” to be fully vaccinated and present a vaccination certificate. The eight categories include dance venues, massage parlors, hostess bars and saunas. Customers and service personnel at the venues have a higher risk of contracting COVID-19, as they can neither avoid contact with people nor strictly observe distancing guidelines, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said. As such, both groups are required to be fully vaccinated, meaning that they must have had at least a
LAWMAKERS RALLY: Beijing’s unlegislated actions breach international and WTO trade rules, and affect the basic principles of the EU single market, the letter said A group of 41 EU lawmakers on Tuesday condemned China for its political and economic coercion of Lithuania, and called on leaders of the bloc to demonstrate solidarity with Vilnius. The letter was initiated by Slovakian Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Miriam Lexmann, who is cochair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. “We, the undersigned members of the European Parliament, resolutely condemn political and economic coercion of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) against Lithuania,” the letter said. The letter addressed European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and
‘GOOD FRIEND’: The Slovenian prime minister said he had visited Taiwan four or five times, and that Taiwanese should have the right to determine their future The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed Slovenia’s plan to establish a representative office in Taiwan, after Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa revealed the plan in an interview with Indian TV station Doordarshan on Monday. Taiwan is a democratic country that respects international democratic standards and international laws, the Slovenian prime minister said in the interview. Slovenia and Taiwan are working on “exchanging representatives,” he said. “Of course, this will not be on the level of embassies. It will be on the same level as many of the EU member countries.” “When I spoke with our businessmen who are trading with Taiwan, they
RSS