In response to calls for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) defectors to maintain pan-blue solidarity ahead of the Nov. 29 elections, People First Party (PFP) spokesman Wu Kun-yu (吳崑玉) yesterday said that the public did not want to see a clash along traditional fault lines and would be turned off by such rhetoric; calling on KMT splinter parties to cease such rhetoric as it might end up causing damage to KMT Taipei mayoral candidate Sean Lien’s (連勝文) chances of getting elected.
Wu’s comments were directed at New Party Chairman Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明), who earlier this week said that independent Taipei mayoral candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) is in fact still deeply involved in pan-green parties, despite claims that he looked to exceed such traditional divisions and called for a “grand coalition.”
Yok called on PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) to lay aside previous grievances and support the Republic of China (ROC).
Wu said that since 2004, the public had tired of the rivalry between the KMT and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), adding that the true enemies to Taiwanese politics were the ultra-loyal supporters of both the pan-blue and pan-green camps.
“The position of mayor is like a caretaker, but when everyone is expecting the caretaker to be a jumping board, chaos ensues,” Wu said. “The PFP is not choosing sides between Lien and Ko; Ko is not as great as he thinks, he is simply in the right place at the right time with the right ideas.”
Lien was once also on the right path, Wu said, pointing to Lien’s previous criticism of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), which Wu said had led people to believe that Lien was a person who knew right from wrong.
“However, Lien abandoned the road himself,” Wu said.
“Ma would not let Lien go back,” he said, adding sarcastically that Ma, who doubles as KMT chairman, stumping for Lien last night was in fact a sincere attempt to cause Lien to lose the election.
Wu also said Yok’s using the ROC as a rallying standard was behind the times, and that the public would not stand for corrupt officials and immoral businessmen, even if it meant supporting a nation called the ROC.
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
NAMING SPAT: The foreign ministry called on Denmark to propose an acceptable solution to the erroneous nationality used for Taiwanese on residence permits Taiwan has revoked some privileges for Danish diplomatic staff over a Danish permit that lists “Taiwan” as “China,” Eric Huang (黃鈞耀), head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of European Affairs, told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Reporters asked Huang whether the Danish government had responded to the ministry’s request that it correct the nationality on Danish residence permits of Taiwanese, which has been listed as “China” since 2024. Taiwan’s representative office in Denmark continues to communicate with the Danish government, and the ministry has revoked some privileges previously granted to Danish representatives in Taiwan and would continue to review
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
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