Former minister of the interior Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) has been selected as the next secretary-general of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the party announced yesterday.
“A soldier does not have the right to choose the battlefield,” Hsu said yesterday of his new role in an upcoming party reshuffle.
President William Lai (賴清德) selected Hsu to serve as secretary-general, leaving him with “no choice, but to accept,” Hsu said at a media conference following a meeting of the party’s Central Standing Committee.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Asked about reports that he had given up an annual salary of NT$8 million (US$263,957) to assume the role, he said that his “salary as a lawyer was even higher.”
Passion for his career, not money, was his main motivation, he added.
Hsu said he first received a phone call from Lai’s office director before Lai approached him directly to ask his opinion of the backlash against the DPP after the failure of last month’s recall campaign.
When Lai was premier, now-Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) was DPP secretary-general, while Hsu served as spokesperson and minister without portfolio, he said.
Lai, Cho and Hsu worked well together, Hsu said, adding that then-Presidential Office secretary-general Chen Chu (陳菊) dubbed them “brothers.”
“Whenever Lai or Cho needed me, I was there,” Hsu added.
Hsu would succeed Lin Yu-chang (林右昌), who resigned following the failure of the recall votes.
All 24 lawmakers of the main opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) who were on the recall ballot survived the vote, ensuring that the KMT, along with the opposition Taiwan People’s Party, maintain control of the legislature.
Meanwhile, Lai is to appoint Cheng Chun-sheng (鄭俊昇), former director of the DPP poll center, as deputy secretary-general.
Hsu said he had confidence in Cheng, adding that he is a “polling expert” who could make up for Hsu’s own shortcomings.
He would “not rule out” the possibility of holding regular livestreams on YouTube once he assumes the position, as he is familiar with hosting programs and the move would be in line with the party’s wish for the public to better understand its political directions, goals and positions, Hsu said.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
RSS