The chairmen of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday both traveled to Kaohsiung to campaign for their party candidates in the city's mayoral election.
KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) denied a report in the Chinese-language United Daily News that the support rate for DPP candidate Chen Chu (陳菊) was catching up with KMT candidate Huang Jun-ying (黃俊英).
"We care about the situation in the Kaohsiung mayoral election very much and currently it's a close battle," Ma said in Kaohsiung before attending the launch ceremony of Huang's campaign headquarters.
PHOTO: CNA
According to the newspaper, a secret poll conducted by the KMT showed that support for Huang has been declining, and that he currently leads Chen by less than 5 percent.
KMT Spokesman Huang Yu-cheng (
"But we are indeed facing a tough battle, and we are taking the situation seriously," he said at KMT headquarters.
PHOTO: CNA
DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun, on the other hand, said that Chen's support rate was increasing, expressed his gratitude for the improvement and urged pan-green supporters to help Chen win the election.
"Right now the discrepancy is only about 3 to 4 percent. We will win the election with some extra effort," he said while campaigning for Chen yesterday and lashing out at Ma for his poor performance as Taipei mayor.
Chen also inaugurated her campaign headquarters yesterday. DPP heavyweights, including Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) and DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), all appeared on stage to lend support to Chen's candidacy.
Meanwhile, in Taipei, Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Taipei mayoral candidate Clara Chou (周玉蔻) burst into tears when talking about recent pressure from some party members dissatisfied with her attacks on Hsieh.
"I have faced enormous pressure ever since I declared my intention to run. My competitors and those who want me to withdraw from the election have tried every way to force me out," she said at the launch of her campaign headquarters.
While declining to confirm whether TSU members had tried to dissuade her from running, Chou thanked former president Lee Teng-hui (
Attending the ceremony, TSU Chairman Shu Chin-chiang (蘇進強) denied the party was against Chou's candidacy, but added that candidates should not exercise smear campaigns against other contenders.
"The party hopes Chou will focus her campaign on presenting municipal policies," he said.
Chou has attacked Hsieh, accusing him of trying to dissuade her from joining the race for mayor by offering her conditions and condemning his alleged involvement in the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp scandal.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
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