President-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday met with People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) to solicit opinions from her former presidential rival on a wide range of major issues, marking the first meeting between the two after January’s election.
Jointly entering a venue packed with reporters at the Evergreen Laurel Hotel Taipei at 10am yesterday, Tsai and Soong made brief greetings and opening remarks before going behind closed doors for their meeting, which lasted about one-and-a-half hours.
Tsai and Soong were accompanied by a number of staff. On the president-elect’s side were former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) secretary-general Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀) — who convened Tsai’s campaign committee — Deputy Secretary-General Hung Yao-fu (洪耀福), DPP Deputy Secretary-General Jason Liu (劉建忻) and DPP Department of News and Information director Alex Huang (黃重諺), while Soong was accompanied by PFP Secretary-General Chin Chin-sheng (秦金生), PFP Deputy Secretary-General Ma Chieh-ming (馬傑明), PFP Culture and Publicity Department director Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) and Soong’s secretary, Wei Chih-chung (魏志中).
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
“First of all, I would like to extend my congratulations to [DPP] Chairperson Tsai on her presidential victory. I have not been able to do so in person,” Soong said prior to the meeting.
Soong, who has run against Tsai for the presidency twice, in 2012 and earlier this year, also expressed appreciation for Tsai’s willingness to sit down with him to exchange opinions on pressing problems facing the nation before she takes office on May 20.
Rising above the longstanding blue-versus-green political wrangling and attaching greater importance to livelihood issues was a major focus of my presidential campaign, Soong said.
“I also adopt the same mindset when meeting with president-elect Tsai here today. I shall pour out all I know without reservation,” he said.
Tsai said that while she and Soong were competitors in the presidential race, she always paid close attention to what the PFP chairman said, because he is widely revered as a veteran politician with ample administrative experience.
“I pledged during my campaign that if elected president, I would meet with leaders of other political parties to ensure better inter-party communication,” Tsai said. “We could even establish a platform where we can discuss pressing national and social issues.”
Calling the meeting an “advice-seeking trip,” Tsai said she planned to seek opinions and advice from Soong on Taiwan’s future direction and major issues.
She said the meeting would not be just a one-time thing and that she intends to consult Soong frequently after her inauguration.
At a post-meeting news conference, the pair exchanged gifts.
Tsai gave Soong tea leaves from Alishan (阿里山), while Soong prepared a box of tangerines from Yunlin County, a fruit that signifies good fortune and is the same color as the PFP’s orange.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS