President-elect William Lai (賴清德) yesterday announced that he has left the New Tide faction of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) out of respect for the presidential office.
“I have respect for the office of the president, and want to govern the nation objectively, without partisanship,” Lai said at a regular midweek meeting of the DPP Central Standing Committee.
He also called for more unity within the party.
Photo: CNA
New Tide chief executive officer and former DPP legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) confirmed that Lai’s departure from the faction had been discussed during campaigning, with all sides agreeing it was important for a president to be seen as representing the whole nation.
“The president’s office is a symbol of unity within the party... So it would be better for the country if Lai were not a member of the faction while in office,” Tuan said.
As some people have mischaracterized and smeared the faction, Lai leaving would be better, so it does not become a burden for him, he said.
New Tide member DPP Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said the faction supports the decision, saying that as president, people should not narrowly identify him with one party faction.
DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇), convener of the party’s Taiwan Forward faction, also approved of the move.
“It is a positive development to stabilize the political situation. Lai must govern for all people in Taiwan,” Wang said, adding that he hopes the decision would promote cooperation with opposition parties.
DPP Legislator Tsai Yi-yu (蔡易餘) said the announcement would help broaden Lai’s appeal.
“Lai can now lead with a broad approach and attract talent into the government from wider political and social circles, and he would no longer be characterized as belonging to one party, or just one faction,” Tsai said.
DPP Legislator Chang Hong-lu (張宏陸) said in an interview that it was good for Lai to remove himself from party factions.
“Although Lai is no longer a New Tide member, it would not affect the DPP’s full support for him,” Chang said.
It is only right for the presidential office to be nonpartisan and for Lai “to rise above party politics,” DPP Legislator and New Tide member Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) said.
In 2006, the DPP announced that it had dissolved all factions, but they remain as informal alliances and networking groups.
In other party news, Hsu Li-ming (許立明) has resigned as DPP secretary-general.
The central standing committee approved his resignation and thanked him for his service, particularly amid the presidential election campaign.
Also during the meeting, Lai, the DPP’s chairman, split in three ways NT$160 million (US$5.1 million) in subsidies the party received based on the number of votes it garnered in the elections.
He said that a portion would be donated to charity, some would go to replenishing party funds, and a third tranche would be used to establish stipends and financial aid for party founders and elderly members in need, as well as scholarships for young members to further their education abroad.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
Shih Hsin University President Chen Ching-he (陳清河) yesterday issued a public apology for comments made in his commencement speech last week, stating that he has asked the school to suspend his duties and halt his wages for two months as a show of contrition. At the commencement ceremony on May 30, Chen said, “If you don’t manage your time well, or your own emotions, or your health, then I am telling every one of you — put a quick end to ‘you,’ because the world has no need for ‘you.’” The comments have sparked significant controversy online, and Chen through an open
RSS