Evergreen chairman Chang Jung-fa (
Evergreen Group is one of the nation's biggest shipping companies. It owns EVA Airways Corp and Evergreen Marine Corp.
KMT Secretary-General Chan Chuen-po (詹春柏) was unwilling to confirm the identity of the buyer yesterday when talking to reporters at the party headquarters.
"The headquarters were sold to a prominent local enterprise and will be used for cultural and educational purposes," he said.
Chan was happy to answer other questions, however.
When asked about the buyer's political affiliation, Chan said that the KMT was concerned only with the buyer's reputation, the sale price and the use to which the building would be put.
"Evergreen means `green,' which is a color you can see everywhere ... The chairman of the Evergreen Group is a successful entrepreneur. We don't pay attention to his political affiliation," Chan said.
Chang is known to be a supporter of the pan-green camp.
On whether the building would be painted green after the Evergreen Group takes over, Chan said: "The buyer has its preference. It's their choice."
Once the deal is finalized, the KMT is expected to move its headquarters to a smaller building on Bade Road.
The 12-story building was built in 1995 and boasts an exhibition room on the first floor, offices on the second through 10th floors, the chairman and vice chairmen's offices on the 11th floor and meeting and banquet rooms on the 12th floor.
The building's NT$40 million annual maintenance fee has, however, become a heavy burden for the cash-strapped KMT.
The luxurious building is also not consistent with the clean, modest image that KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
Given these financial and symbolic concerns, the KMT decided to sell the building and move to a new location.
The decision was made despite opposition from many older party officials who argued that the party should not sell its "spiritual fort."
The remaining details of the deal will be resolved once Ma returns from the US at the end of the month.
Democratic Progressive Party spokesman Tsai Huang-liang (
Tsai urged the buyer to think twice before signing the contract.
Additional reporting by Jewel Huang
Taiwan’s Lee Chia-hao (李佳豪) on Sunday won a silver medal at the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham, England, a career best. Lee, 25, took silver in the final of the men’s singles against world No. 1 Shi Yuqi (石宇奇) of China, who won 21-17, 21-19 in a tough match that lasted 51 minutes. After the match, the Taiwanese player, who ranks No. 22 in the world, said it felt unreal to be challenging an opponent of Shi’s caliber. “I had to be in peak form, and constantly switch my rhythm and tactics in order to score points effectively,” he said. Lee got
‘CROWN JEWEL’: Washington ‘can delay and deter’ Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan, but it is ‘a very delicate situation there,’ the secretary of state said US President Donald Trump is opposed to any change to Taiwan’s “status quo” by force or extortion and would maintain that policy, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Hugh Hewitt Show host on Wednesday. The US’ policy is to maintain Taiwan’s “status quo” and to oppose any changes in the situation by force or extortion, Rubio said. Hewitt asked Rubio about the significance of Trump earlier this month speaking with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) at the White House, a meeting that Hewitt described as a “big deal.” Asked whether the meeting was an indication of the
‘RELATIVELY STRONG LANGUAGE’: An expert said the state department has not softened its language on China and was ‘probably a little more Taiwan supportive’ China’s latest drills near Taiwan on Monday were “brazen and irresponsible threats,” a US Department of State spokesperson said on Tuesday, while reiterating Washington’s decades-long support of Taipei. “China cannot credibly claim to be a ‘force for stability in a turbulent world’ while issuing brazen and irresponsible threats toward Taiwan,” the unnamed spokesperson said in an e-mailed response to media queries. Washington’s enduring commitment to Taiwan will continue as it has for 45 years and the US “will continue to support Taiwan in the face of China’s military, economic, informational and diplomatic pressure campaign,” the e-mail said. “Alongside our international partners, we firmly
KAOHSIUNG CEREMONY: The contract chipmaker is planning to build 5 fabs in the southern city to gradually expand its 2-nanometer chip capacity Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday confirmed that it plans to hold a ceremony on March 31 to unveil a capacity expansion plan for its most advanced 2-nanometer chips in Kaohsiung, demonstrating its commitment to further investment at home. The ceremony is to be hosted by TSMC cochief operating officer Y.P. Chyn (秦永沛). It did not disclose whether Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and high-ranking government officials would attend the ceremony. More details are to be released next week, it said. The chipmaker’s latest move came after its announcement earlier this month of an additional US$100 billion
RSS