The margin between Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Eric Chu (朱立倫) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is closing and Chu could eventually win the election by a narrow margin, KMT presidential campaign manager Jason Hu (胡志強) said.
Speaking at a campaign event in Taichung, Hu said that after the televised debate attended by the three presidential candidates last week, the KMT campaign headquarters expects the party’s presidential and vice presidential candidates to fare better in polls conducted in the run-up to the Jan. 16 election.
Hu said he was hopeful of containing the margin by which Chu trails Tsai by 10 percentage points and narrowing that gap in less than one week before election day.
“They will probably not win by a wide margin, but winning is all that matters,” he added.
Hu said that Chu delivered the best performance among the three candidates during the debate and that he gave the best policy address with his precise remarks and direct responses to his rivals’ questions.
Although the KMT’s prospects of winning are bleak, it would be a “shame” if Chu lost just because he is perceived less likely to win, Hu said.
In reference to the so-called “1992 consensus,” Hu said that Chu never rendered a clearer explanation of the “consensus,” while Tsai continued to equivocate when asked to declare her stance on the “consensus.”
The “1992 consensus” refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Former KMT lawmaker Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up the term in 2000 when he was head of the Mainland Affairs Council.
Hu said that the KMT should be humble and accept the mounting criticism coming its way, but that does not mean the public should vent their frustration with the KMT by throwing away the nation’s future.
He said that it was with great difficulty that the nation made it through the tumultuous years in which it frequently went to war with China, which is why war must not be revived across the Taiwan Strait.
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
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
EVERYONE’S ISSUE: Kim said that during a visit to Taiwan, she asked what would happen if China attacked, and was told that the global economy would shut down Taiwan is critical to the global economy, and its defense is a “here and now” issue, US Representative Young Kim said during a roundtable talk on Taiwan-US relations on Friday. Kim, who serves on the US House of Representatives’ Foreign Affairs Committee, held a roundtable talk titled “Global Ties, Local Impact: Why Taiwan Matters for California,” at Santiago Canyon College in Orange County, California. “Despite its small size and long distance from us, Taiwan’s cultural and economic importance is felt across our communities,” Kim said during her opening remarks. Stanford University researcher and lecturer Lanhee Chen (陳仁宜), lawyer Lin Ching-chi
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