Former Kaohsiung Information Bureau director-general Anne Wang (王淺秋) and lawyer Yeh Ching-yuan (葉慶元) yesterday filed a request with the Taipei High Administrative Court to halt an expected recall vote of Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), claiming that campaigners “jumped the gun” in collecting signatures.
Petitioners on Tuesday passed the second-stage threshold needed for a recall vote after the Kaohsiung City Election Commission finished reviewing more than 400,000 signatures.
The commission confirmed 377,662 signatures to be valid after duplicates and signatures with incomplete information were removed.
Photo: CNA
It was to report the result yesterday to the Central Election Commission, which is expected to hold a meeting to review the case on Friday next week.
A vote must be held 20 to 60 days after a recall case is established.
Wecare Kaohsiung founder Aaron Yin (尹立), who has been leading the campaign to recall the mayor, yesterday said that the filing by Wang, Han’s spokeswoman in last year’s mayoral election, and Yeh was as if Han had lost a game of mahjong and was “flipping the table.”
“This is ridiculous behavior,” Yin said.
The results announced on Tuesday were a review of the second-stage signatures, but Han’s filing addresses the first stage of the process, he said.
Han should have raised his issues then, Yin said, questioning why the mayor had waited until the results were announced to mention them.
“This means that Han Kuo-yu is running out of tactics and can no longer find any reasons to refute the expression of Kaohsiung residents,” he said.
Chang Po-yang (張博洋), deputy director of Taiwan Statebuilding Party’s news department, said that he could not believe that a person who “ran away” was accusing petitioners of collecting signatures too early, referring to Han’s announcement less than a year after assuming office as mayor that he would take a leave of absence to campaign for president.
Han’s announcement that he would file a request to stop a vote fewer than 12 hours after the petition passed its second-stage signature threshold shows that he did not take the recall petition seriously before, and now, the entire Kaohsiung City Government is desperate, Chang said.
More than 370,000 signatures have been approved, but Han is disputing the 20,000 signatures collected during the first phase, he said.
“This is like a child arguing,” he added.
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday hosted a reception to celebrate Double Ten National Day. Conservative Canadian lawmaker Marc Dalton called Taiwan a “beacon of courage and resilience in the face of rising authoritarianism,” according to a post on the Taiwan in Vancouver Facebook page. Also in attendance were fellow conservative caucus members Tako Van Popta and Chak Au, who said that Taiwan plays an “indispensable role” in ensuring global peace, prosperity and stability due to its strategic position in the Indo-Pacific region, it said. Canadian lawmaker Michael Cooper also recorded a message wishing Taiwan a
RSS