Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Wang Shih-cheng (王世堅) leapt from a 30m high platform in Japan earlier this month as he carried out his promise to bungee jump after losing a bet over who would win the Jan. 14 presidential election.
During an interview with a local radio talk show last year, Wang said he would do a bungee jump if then-DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) lost the Jan. 14 presidential election to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
On March 6, Wang performed the bungee jump on the platform at a farm in Chiba County, Japan, and posted the video clip on his Facebook page on Monday to prove he kept his promise.
Photo: Liu Jung, Taipei Times, from on-line video
“I am a politician who keeps my promises, and I want to set an example for other politicians that we are responsible for what we say,” he said.
Wang said he had planned to carry out his promise by leaping from a bridge in New Taipei City (新北市), but the city government turned down his application due to public security concerns, and he later decided to do the jump in Japan.
In the video clip, Wang shouted: “A promise is a promise,” before leaping from the platform in heavy rain.
“It was so cold that day, and I felt dizzy during the fall … Just like me, the DPP also experienced a terrible fall to the ground, but we will eventually bounce back,” he said.
The bungee jump was not the first promise Wang carried out after a bet. In 2008, as a DPP legislator, Wang dared he would jump into the sea at Chienshuiwan (淺水灣) if all eight of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) legislative candidates were elected in Taipei constituencies.
Riding a jet ski about 100m offshore, Wang plunged into the waters, although he was ridiculed by some netizens who said that it looked as if he fell into the water rather than jumped.
Wang on Monday said he would continue to make similar bets that the DPP would obtain election victories.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
RSS