Party discipline is a make-or-break factor to rehabilitating the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) public image, KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) said yesterday.
Chiang made the remark in a Hit FM radio interview on the party’s relationship with the media, characterizing his efforts to communicate the party’s ideals and plans as “tiresome” due to a “severe imbalance” in reporting.
The party’s relationship with the media is rocky and, as such, the KMT is absolutely at a disadvantage in terms of news coverage, he said.
He cited as an example a rumor that Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) had quaffed three bottles of kaoliang liquor to secure the party’s presidential nomination.
“I never believed that,” Chiang said.
The KMT cannot tell certain news outlets what to say, so it should instead focus on the outlets it can influence, Chiang said, adding that the party would review its ties and relations with media groups and change how it handles the media.
The party should treat the media with dignity and respect, he said, expressing the hope that the party, under his leadership, would prove to the media that this gesture is sincere.
Asked whether controversy involving KMT Legislator Wu Sz-huai (吳斯懷) has undercut the party’s rebranding efforts and fueled Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) attacks on the KMT, Chiang said that Wu has received the second-most negative online commentary among KMT lawmakers.
With the DPP deliberately overinterpreting his every word and action, it is easy for the public to see Wu’s remarks as representing the party, Chiang said, adding that he would find time to speak with Wu and offer the party’s assistance in handling the issue.
Should Wu refuse the party’s goodwill and repeat his mistakes, the KMT would have no alternative but to issue him a reprimand, which could result in his removal from the legislator-at-large seat, Chiang said.
Party discipline must be maintained if the rebranding efforts are to succeed, he said.
At a KMT Central Standing Committee meeting on Wednesday, Chiang said that legislators-at-large could have their nominations rescinded if their remarks or actions harm the party’s image.
Chiang said that he has tasked the KMT Organizational Development Committee with drafting changes to the ratio of legislator-at-large nominations assigned by the chairperson and the party’s nomination committee.
The changes would be discussed by the KMT Reform Affairs Committee, he said.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS