The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday rejected accusations that its candidate in March 4’s Nantou County legislative by-election, former legislator Tsai Pei-hui (蔡培慧), is a “parachute candidate.”
DPP Deputy Secretary-General Huang Chien-chia (黃建嘉) said that criticism of Tsai by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Lin Ming-chen (林明溱) should be measured against what he called Lin’s abuse of power to exploit the county’s finances and natural resources for personal gain.
Lin was in a conflict of interest when as Nantou County commissioner he appointed his son as a special assistant and hired another relative as chief office secretary, Huang said.
Photo: CNA
“Lin packed his family and relatives into positions in public projects,” he said.
Lin was Nantou County commissioner for two terms from 2014 to last year. Previously he was a legislator from 2008 to 2014, a county councilor for one term and served two terms as Jiji Township mayor from 1994 to 2002.
“Through these public offices, he hired his son and relatives to county government in flagrant abuses of power,” Huang said.
“As county commissioner, Lin exploited the people and county’s natural resources like a colony under control of his family’s fiefdom,” he added.
Huang also criticized Lin’s record.
“As commissioner, Nantou County’s population dropped to about 480,000. About 20 percent of businesses have closed. Throughout the county, many townships and villages have piled up garbage due to trash collection problems,” Huang said.
Lin earlier told a news conference at his campaign office that Tsai is a “parachute candidate” who serves “only her party’s needs, and she does not have local people’s best interest in mind.”
Tsai while canvassing responded by saying she served as executive secretary of the 921 Earthquake Reconstruction Foundation after a devastating earthquake centered in Jiji on Sept. 21, 1999, and worked to help townships and counties throughout Nantou recover.
“At that time, when Lin was mayor of Jiji Township, the funding for a local cultural festival came from our foundation,” she said.
A native of Nantou’s Yuchi Township (魚池), Tsai was previously a professor who conducted research into agriculture economies. She has also been a DPP legislator-at-large, during which time she said she secured funding to build road sections for farmers, and pushed to secure farmer retirement pensions.
At Lin’s news conference, KMT Culture and Communications Committee deputy director-general Lin Chia-hsing (林家興) said that Tsai supported projects that harmed the environment and “has no popular support.”
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
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
RSS