Taiwanese Internet celebrity Chung Wei-ting (仲惟鼎), also known as AmoGood (古阿莫), yesterday failed in his bid to become a member of the New Power Party’s (NPP) central decisionmaking committee.
The result has thwarted his plan to run for chairman of the party.
“It is a pity that I cannot contribute to the reform of the party. However, I am still an NPP member and there are still government and party jobs at the local level,” Chung said. “I will continue to oversee the government and work hard for Taiwan.”
Photo: Hu Shun-hsiang, Taipei Times
“I ran in the election for the NPP’s central decisionmaking committee because I want Taiwanese to see and understand the party,” Chung said in a statement, adding that he hopes newly elected committee members make great strides for the party.
Chung, who is known for his irreverent movie reviews, has more than 10 million subscribers on Sina Weibo and 2 million on Bilibili. The two Chinese social media sites have since Feb. 4 blocked him from accessing his accounts after he announced his bid to enter Taiwanese politics.
As being a committee member qualifies an NPP member to run for chairperson, Chung said previously he would run if the party was lacking good leaders.
Prior to the election, Chung said he entered politics because he wanted to make contributions to Taiwanese society, and he joined the NPP because it allows an ordinary party member like him to participate in the election for members of the central decisionmaking committee.
Chung was one of the 29 party members vying for 15 spots on the committee, the NPP said, adding that 827 members voted in the election, representing 75 percent of the membership.
NPP Chairwoman and Legislator Chen Jiau-hua (陳椒華), former Miaoli commissioner candidate Sung Kuo-ting (宋國鼎), NPP Secretary-General Christy Pai (白卿芬), and legislators Claire Wang (王婉諭) and Chiu Hsien-chih (邱顯智) were elected to the committee.
Sung garnered the highest votes among all 15 members, the NPP said.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central