A dozen younger prospective Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidates for the Nov. 24 city and county councilor elections yesterday established a youth coalition, urging party headquarters to give young party members more visibility.
The Young Blue Power (藍色新力量) coalition was launched at a news conference at the Legislative Yuan amid renewed calls for increased youth participation, echoing similar voices after the KMT’s poor showing in the local and presidential races in 2014 and 2016 respectively.
The coalition consists of 12 aspiring KMT candidates for city and county councilor positions in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taichung and Kaohsiung, and Nantou, Chiayi and Taitung counties.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Noteworthy members include KMT Vice Chairman Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌) office spokeswoman Yu Shu-hui (游淑慧), who hopes to run in Taipei’s Neihu (內湖) and Nangang (南港) districts; New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu’s (朱立倫) secretary Chiang I-chen (江怡臻), who is vying to stand in that city’s Tucheng (土城), Shulin (樹林), Sansia (三峽) and Yingge (鶯歌) districts; and former KMT spokesman Hu Wen-chi (胡文琦), who is vying for a seat in the city’s Yonghe District (永和).
“The KMT must stand alongside these young candidates. It should also make an effort to cultivate young talent, and encourage young people to participate in politics and contribute to Taiwan,” New Taipei City Deputy Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said at the event.
If elected, young candidates would remember the reasons that motivated them to run for public office and never cease to speak up for the “silent majority,” Hou said.
He also used the event to call on the public to support his election bid, as the KMT is to conduct opinion polls for New Taipei City’s mayoral primary election from today to Thursday.
KMT Legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖), who was elected Taipei city councilor at the age of 32 in 1989, said the party has not done enough to provide a podium for its talented young members to shine.
Although the event was held to announce the new coalition, it somewhat lost focus due to the presence of Hou and Chen, who on Wednesday last week won the KMT’s nomination for the Taoyuan mayoral election.
The seven coalition members who attended the event jointly expressed their support for Hou, who is competing against two other prospective candidates, including former Taipei County commissioner Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋).
OFFLINE: People who do not wish to register can get the money from select ATMs using their bank card, ID number and National Health Insurance card number Online registration for NT$6,000 (US$196.32) cash payments drawn from last year’s tax surplus is to open today for eligible people whose national ID or permanent residency number ends in either a zero or a one, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday. Officials from the ministry revealed which days Taiwanese and eligible foreigners would be able to register for the cash payments at a joint news conference with the Ministry of Digital Affairs. Online registration is to open tomorrow for those whose number ends in a two or three; on Friday for those that end in a four or five: on Saturday
TECH PROGRAM: A US official said that an important part of the delegation’s trip would be to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co executives The US is to send officials in charge of chip development to Taiwan, Japan and South Korea to promote cooperation in the global semiconductor supply chain, the US Department of Commerce said on Tuesday. Chips Program Office Director Michael Schmidt announced the visit, which marks the first time officials from the office are to visit the three nations since it was set up in September last year. “As semiconductors and technologies continue to evolve, the United States will keep working with allies and partners to develop coordinated strategies to ensure that malign actors cannot use the latest technologies to undermine our collective
Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) officials are investigating why a Starlux Airlines flight to Penang, Malaysia, returned to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport nearly two hours after takeoff yesterday morning. The airline said in a statement that Flight JX721 to Penang took off from Taoyuan airport at 9:20am. “After the dashboard showed a signal of an abnormality in the hydraulic system, the captain followed standard operating procedures and returned the flight to Taoyuan airport for safety precautions,” the airline said, adding that the flight landed safely at the airport at 11:04am. The airline arranged for the passengers to have lunch after the flight landed and
WORKING UP AN APPETITE: Sales at the Rueifong Night Market surged 20 to 30 percent, while seats at Liouhe Night Market were packed until 1am, market officials said South Korean pop band Blackpink’s concerts over the weekend in Kaohsiung helped draw large crowds to local night markets, the Kaohsiung City Government said yesterday. The two concerts on Saturday and Sunday at Kaohsiung National Stadium drew more than 90,000 people. The city government offered NT$50 vouchers to spend locally to concertgoers who showed their ticket stubs. Liouhe Night Market (六合夜市) management committee head Chuang Chi-chang (莊其章) said that crowds over the weekend surged at about 10pm and the market remained packed until 1:30am. “Almost all the seats were filled,” Chuang said. Night market stall owners had stocked up in expectation of an increased number
RSS