Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday promised to carry out his campaign promises in his second term by building public housing units and urban renewal projects that will make Taipei a more affordable and beautiful city.
Hau won re-election in last Saturday’s special municipality elections and will be sworn in on Dec. 25.
Discussing his plans for the second term with the press, Hau promised to make good on all his campaign promises, prioritizing the efforts in building affordable public housing units downtown for young people and disadvantaged families.
Photo: CNA
“We are trying to change the perception of public housing that it is always of poor quality ... The public housing units in Taipei will offer a high-quality living environment for residents,” he said.
The Hau administration’s plan to build rental apartments in one of the city’s most expensive areas, on the intersection of Renai Road and Jianguo S Road, sparked disputes and the Cabinet has shown little support for the project, saying that the plan had not been agreed upon and that the location in Da-an (大安) District was inappropriate.
Hau said he would boost efforts to publicize municipal policies so that Taipei residents would have a better understanding of his administration’s dedication.
“We didn’t do a good job promoting our municipal projects before and the public’s lack of understanding made it difficult for us to push the projects. We will enhance our communication efforts the future,” he said.
When asked about a possible reshuffle of his team, Hau said he would make an announcement before Dec. 25, declining to say if former deputy mayor Lee Yong-ping (李永萍) would be reappointed.
Lee resigned on Sept. 13 amid the controversy over the Xinsheng Overpass reconstruction project, in which the city was overcharged for construction materials.
Hau will also have to find a replacement for Taipei Deputy Mayor Lin Chien-yuan (林建元), who is returning to academia.
Department of Transportation Commissioner Luo Shiaw-shyan (羅孝賢) and the head of the Department of Urban Development, Ding Yuh-chyurn (丁育群), are also rumored to be leaving their posts.
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.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
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
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