Former Changhua County commissioner Cho Po-yuan (卓伯源) yesterday announced his bid for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) leadership, becoming the fourth candidate in the race.
Cho, 56, who served as county commissioner from 2005 to 2014, said on Facebook that he would focus his efforts on leading the KMT if he wins and would not enter legislative or presidential elections in 2024.
On the issue of cross-strait policy, he said the KMT upholds the “1992 consensus” as the basis for exchanges with China.
If peaceful dialogue can be conducted between the two sides on an equal footing, it would bring prosperity to Taiwan, he said.
The other candidates in the race are Sun Yat-sen School president Chang Ya-chung (張亞中), former head of the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics Wei Po-tao (韋伯韜) and KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣).
Former KMT chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), former Kaohsiung mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) and Sean Lien (連勝文), son of former vice president Lien Chan (連戰), are also reportedly eyeing the position.
The KMT chairperson election was originally scheduled for July 24, but it has been postponed due to a nationwide level 3 COVID-19 alert, which has been extended until July 26.
Citing KMT sources, local media on Saturday reported that the party is hoping to hold the election in late September or early October, once the alert level is lowered.
With Chiang’s tenure as KMT chairman due to end on Aug. 20, the KMT will have to appoint an acting chairperson to take it through to the election, the reports said.
Chiang, 49, was elected chairman last year in a by-election that was held to fill the vacancy left by former KMT chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), who stepped down after the party’s defeat in the presidential and legislative elections that year.
The “1992 consensus” — a term that former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first
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