The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) election supervisory body yesterday revoked a controversial decision to refer KMT chair candidate Chang Ya-chung (張亞中) to the party’s disciplinary committee.
Chang, whose popularity rose after a televised debate on Sept. 4, is one of four candidates in the KMT’s chair election to take place on Saturday next week.
The other candidates are former Changhua County commissioner Cho Po-yuan (卓伯源), incumbent KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) and former New Taipei City mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫), who was KMT chairman from January 2015 to January 2016.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
The KMT Central Election Supervision Committee at a meeting on Monday decided to refer Chang, who is president of Sun Yat-sen School, to the party’s Central Evaluation and Disciplinary Committee, citing what it described as Chang’s repeated verbal attacks against Chu during the campaign.
The election committee also said that it would postpone a series of regional platform presentations for the candidates until after the disciplinary committee had ruled on the matter.
Chiang on Monday said that he was surprised by the election committee’s decision and urged its members to reconsider.
New Taipei City Councilor Chen Ming-yi (陳明義), who represents Chiang on the election committee, was not at the meeting when the decision was made, Chiang said.
The election committee’s decision two weeks before the vote would not help to resolve issues within the KMT and could lead to controversy, he said.
Chu later on Monday said that he hoped the disciplinary committee would not penalize Chang, and called on Chiang and the KMT Central Standing Committee to “revoke the order” to refer Chang to the disciplinary committee.
Chiang responded by saying that on Aug. 17 he took a leave of absence from his position as KMT chairman to campaign for re-election and therefore he has no say over party affairs.
Whereas Chen did not attend the election committee meeting, Chu’s representative, Yao Chiang-lin (姚江臨) did, Chiang said.
The election committee met yesterday and approved a proposal from Chen to rescind both the decision to refer Chang to the disciplinary committee and to postpone the regional platform presentations, the KMT said.
Chang in a statement later yesterday said that the controversy had caused people to question the neutrality of the party’s election officials.
The KMT should clear up the doubts of the candidates, party members and public, by issuing an explanation and holding those involved responsible, he said.
Additional reporting by CNA
Hong Kong singer Eason Chan’s (陳奕迅) concerts in Kaohsiung this weekend have been postponed after he was diagnosed with Covid-19 this morning, the organizer said today. Chan’s “FEAR and DREAMS” concert which was scheduled to be held in the coming three days at the Kaohsiung Arena would be rescheduled to May 29, 30 and 31, while the three shows scheduled over the next weekend, from May 23 to 25, would be held as usual, Universal Music said in a statement. Ticket holders can apply for a full refund or attend the postponed concerts with the same seating, the organizer said. Refund arrangements would
Taiwanese indie band Sunset Rollercoaster and South Korean outfit Hyukoh collectively received the most nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards, earning a total of seven nods from the jury on Wednesday. The bands collaborated on their 2024 album AAA, which received nominations for best band, best album producer, best album design and best vocal album recording. “Young Man,” a single from the album, earned nominations for song of the year and best music video, while another track, “Antenna,” also received a best music video nomination. Late Hong Kong-American singer Khalil Fong (方大同) was named the jury award winner for his 2024 album
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Friday laid out the Cabinet’s updated policy agenda and recapped the government’s achievements ahead of the one-year anniversary of President William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration. Cho said the government had made progress across a range of areas, including rebuilding Hualien, cracking down on fraud, improving pedestrian safety and promoting economic growth. “I hope the public will not have the impression that the Cabinet only asked the legislature to reconsider a bunch of legal amendments,” Cho said, calling the moves “necessary” to protect constitutional governance and the public’s interest. The Cabinet would work toward achieving its “1+7” plan, he said. The
RSS