Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday resigned as chairman of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) after appointing Legislator Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) as acting chairman.
Ko made the announcement at an emergency meeting of the TPP Central Standing Committee days after the Taipei District Court released him from pretrial detention on bail of NT$70 million (US$2.14 million).
Ko is embroiled in a legal battle over corruption allegations from his time as Taipei mayor in connection to the Core Pacific City Co (京華城購物中心) redevelopment project. If convicted, he would face up to 28 years and six months in prison.
Photo courtesy of the Taiwan People’s Party
TPP Taichung chapter head Chiang Ho-shu (江和樹) told reporters that Ko quit as party chairman, but would remain a volunteer and a member for life.
“The spirit of Ko will forever stay in the party,” Chiang said.
The committee members accepted the former leader’s resignation in tears, Chiang said, adding that Ko was similarly choked with emotion in rejecting a motion to make him an honorary chairman.
The party would not benefit from engaging in empty gestures, he quoted Ko as saying.
The committee confirmed Huang’s nomination in a unanimous decision of 14 to zero, with the nominee himself being the only member to abstain, Chiang said, adding that he was the first to raise a hand to back Huang.
Chiang urged TPP supporters to understand that Ko was “forced” into the decision, which he made out of love for the party.
“If the party should fall, so would Ko,” he said.
The TPP expects an uphill battle in the local elections next year, as Ko’s departure from leadership might trigger a loss of support, Chiang said, adding that the party would do its best to persuade voters.
“I am confident that Ko would come back by the front door, so every party member who believes in Ko’s innocence should support the committee’s decision,” he said.
Later yesterday evening, the Taiwan High Court again vacated the ruling allowing Ko to post bail, sending the matter back to the Taipei District Court.
The Taipei District Court is expected to hold a third-time bail hearing today to decide whether Ko would be returned to pretrial detention.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
RSS