Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers yesterday expressed divided views over the allegedly tense relationship between President Chen Shui-bian (
Claims have appeared in the Chinese-language media that Chen has accused Lu of "taking advantage" of him since she was elected to take over the party's helm after former DPP chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) stepped down to take the blame for the party's poor election performance.
Deputy Secretary-General of the Presidential Office Ma Yung-cheng (
Speculation is mounting that the president is upset about Lu's recent high-profile moves after taking up the job. Lu has met with lawmakers, faction leaders and high-ranking party officials, which some people have interpreted as an aggressive effort to boost her chances in the DPP chairmanship election, which is scheduled to be held before the Lunar New Year.
Presidential Office officials have revealed that Presidential Office Secretary-General Yu Shyi-kun may also consider running for the post if he receives the clear and full support of the president.
While Chen yesterday cancelled a planned meeting with Lu, Lu also cancelled her meeting with party officials.
Despite describing Lu as "hyperactive," DPP Legislator Lee Chun-yee (
"I think the president and the vice president may have not yet reached an agreement on what her new responsibilities are," he said. "The vice president and DPP members must work with each other to build more mutual trust."
DPP Legislator Lin Chung-mo (
"Many colleagues have seen her as a headache since she was elected vice president. I admit that she is a very talented and capable person, but one of her biggest shortcomings is that she is not a team player and has too much ego," Lin said.
Lin cited a comment reportedly made by Lu in the run-up to the Dec. 3 polls. Lu predicted that the DPP would lose the elections.
DPP Legislator Lin Cho-shui (林濁水) yesterday said that although he is not sure whether the president has indeed accused Lu of taking advantage of him, he thought it was inappropriate for Lu to make any major decisions before a new chairman has been elected.
"If she has any good ideas about party reform, she might want to leave it to the new chairman or ask the new chairperson to seriously consider it. However, it would be very inappropriate for an acting chairperson to make such important decisions or major changes," Lin said.
As the president has not yet revealed how he intends to tackle the political fallout created by the dismal election results, Lin yesterday said that Chen might want to focus on what direction the party is to take in future, what vision it plans to bring to the people and what government policies it intends to introduce before figuring out how to reorganize the government.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
Taiwan next year plans to launch its first nationwide census on elderly people living independently to identify the estimated 700,000 seniors to strengthen community-based healthcare and long-term care services, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) said yesterday. Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said on the sidelines of a healthcare seminar that the nation’s rapidly aging population and declining birthrate have made the issue of elderly people living alone increasingly pressing. The survey, to be jointly conducted by the MOHW and the Ministry of the Interior, aims to establish baseline data and better allocate care resources, he
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