Vice President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday pledged to unite the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and to “polish its image as an honest, diligent and grassroots party,” after he was elected its new chairman.
The election was held after President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) stepped down as DPP chairperson following the party’s bruising defeats in the local elections on Nov. 26 last year.
Lai, who ran unopposed, was elected with 99.65 percent of the votes, DPP interim secretary-general Sidney Lin (林鶴明) told a news conference last night.
Photo: CNA
Lai won 41,840 votes and the turnout rate was 17.59 percent, slightly higher than the 16.9 percent in the previous chairperson election in 2019, Lin said.
The DPP’s Central Standing Committee is to confirm the result on Wednesday, after which Lai is to take over the post from Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁), who was appointed by the committee as the party’s interim chairman.
Lai’s term as DPP chairman is to end on May 19 next year.
Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times
After Lin’s announcement, Lai said in a statement that he would “go all-in to undertake the mission” entrusted to him.
His goals are to win back people’s trust, unite the party and lead the DPP to honor its slogan — “honesty, diligence and love for the country,” he said.
The DPP brought about a democratic revolution in Taiwan, Lai said, adding that its mission is to safeguard the nation and promote democracy, peace and prosperity.
He thanked those party members who cast their ballots, adding that every vote and all of their advice would contribute to the “drive for the DPP to revive.”
Chen thanked Lai for shouldering the challenges the DPP is facing and said he hopes the party can regroup soon to guard the country.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Cultural and Communications Committee director Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) congratulated Lai and said he hopes the KMT and DPP can have a healthy competition and value the public’s opinions.
Lai is widely expected to run for president next year, but the 63-year-old chairman-elect first has to take on some major challenges facing the party.
These include bringing the DPP back on track after local election defeats, restoring unity in an increasingly divided party and trying to win back the support of younger voters.
Ahead of the chairperson election, Lai held his final political platform presentation on Saturday night in Tainan.
Party members who spoke at the event expressed their hopes that Lai would crack down on allegedly illicit finances and organized crime connections within the DPP, saying the issues are causing great damage to the party.
Those who act against party discipline should be punished without mercy, they said, referring to allegations of vote-buying in the Tainan City Council speaker election last month.
In response, Lai led DPP Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲), as well as Tainan city councilors and six DPP legislators representing constituencies in the city, in a bow to apologize to party members.
Party members told him they had not given up on the DPP, Lai said, adding that democracy is the goal that the party pursues.
He asked party members holding government positions not to forget the aspirations they had when first joining the party, adding that they should not put personal interests ahead of the interests of the country.
Additional reporting by Wang Shu-hsiu, Hung Jui-chin, Lin Liang-sheng and CNA
Authorities have detained three former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TMSC, 台積電) employees on suspicion of compromising classified technology used in making 2-nanometer chips, the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. Prosecutors are holding a former TSMC engineer surnamed Chen (陳) and two recently sacked TSMC engineers, including one person surnamed Wu (吳) in detention with restricted communication, following an investigation launched on July 25, a statement said. The announcement came a day after Nikkei Asia reported on the technology theft in an exclusive story, saying TSMC had fired two workers for contravening data rules on advanced chipmaking technology. Two-nanometer wafers are the most
DEFENSE: The first set of three NASAMS that were previously purchased is expected to be delivered by the end of this year and deployed near the capital, sources said Taiwan plans to procure 28 more sets of M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as well as nine additional sets of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), military sources said yesterday. Taiwan had previously purchased 29 HIMARS launchers from the US and received the first 11 last year. Once the planned purchases are completed and delivered, Taiwan would have 57 sets of HIMARS. The army has also increased the number of MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) purchased from 64 to 84, the sources added. Each HIMARS launch pod can carry six Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, capable of
CHINA’s BULLYING: The former British prime minister said that he believes ‘Taiwan can and will’ protect its freedom and democracy, as its people are lovers of liberty Former British prime minister Boris Johnson yesterday said Western nations should have the courage to stand with and deepen their economic partnerships with Taiwan in the face of China’s intensified pressure. He made the remarks at the ninth Ketagalan Forum: 2025 Indo-Pacific Security Dialogue hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prospect Foundation in Taipei. Johnson, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time, said he had seen Taiwan’s coastline on a screen on his indoor bicycle, but wanted to learn more about the nation, including its artificial intelligence (AI) development, the key technology of the 21st century. Calling himself an
South Korea yesterday said that it was removing loudspeakers used to blare K-pop and news reports to North Korea, as the new administration in Seoul tries to ease tensions with its bellicose neighbor. The nations, still technically at war, had already halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarized zone, Seoul’s military said in June after the election of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. It said in June that Pyongyang stopped transmitting bizarre, unsettling noises along the border that had become a major nuisance for South Korean residents, a day after South Korea’s loudspeakers fell silent. “Starting today, the military has begun removing the loudspeakers,”
RSS