People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) yesterday pledged to regain the party’s influence in the legislature as he announced 10 candidates that will represent the PFP in January’s legislative elections, while remaining vague about whether he would run for president.
Leading the 10 candidates in declaring the PFP’s determination to obtain at least three seats in the next legislature to form a caucus, Soong said the PFP aimed to push for a “quiet revolution” that would end bipartisan confrontation in the legislature and make the public’s needs the priority.
Former independent legislator Li Ao (李敖), who will represent the PFP in Taipei City’s Wenshan (文山)-Zhongzheng (中正) electoral district, joined Soong in challenging the partisan culture in the legislature, saying power struggles between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) paralyze it.
“There are too many bills lying on the legislative floor that haven’t been handled and it’s been unbearable that the KMT and the DPP have cheated us for so long ... This time I will collaborate with James Soong and the PFP in the election so that the PFP caucus can do something for the people,” Li said.
He also urged Soong to join the presidential election as a way to promote the party’s candidates in the legislative elections.
Soong, who has said in several interviews that he will either join the presidential or legislative races, did not announce his decision at the press conference, insisting that helping the PFP win seats in the legislature was more important.
“It takes people, money and other objective conditions to run for the presidency,” Soong said. “It’s better to end the negative reputation of our legislature for incompetence before discussing which position James Soong should be in.”
Comparing himself to former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平) and former British prime minister Winston Churchill, who both went through ups and downs in their political careers, Soong urged supporters to give him more time to make a decision on the matter.
When asked whether he would meet with President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), Soong said that the KMT and PFP should exchange ideas via meetings between the parties’ secretaries-general and that a meeting with Ma was unnecessary.
Soong’s possible presidential bid has also been seen as a potential spoiler for Ma, who is facing a tight race against DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
At a separate setting yesterday, Ma, who doubles as KMT chairman, said his party respected the PFP’s presentation of its own legislative candidates, but added that the KMT still hoped to work with the PFP on legislative nominations.
Presiding over the KMT’s Central Standing Committee, Ma said the KMT never intended to dissuade PFP candidates and that KMT-PFP cooperation remained the party’s goal.
Facing a split in the pan-blue camp, KMT Secretary-General Liao Liao-yi (廖了以) said the president was still willing to meet with Soong to discuss cooperation between the two parties and urged the PFP to consider the overall situation and meet its supporters’ expectations of a united pan-blue camp in the elections.
The PFP said it would release the names of more legislative nominees as it hopes to win at least 5 percent of the vote — the threshold for securing legislator-at-large seats — in the legislative elections.
The DPP, meanwhile, said it respected the PFP’s decision to take part in the elections as the right to political participation is protected by the Constitution.
The new development would not affect the DPP’s legislative campaign strategy and tempo, DPP spokesperson Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said.
While most people see the division in the pan-blue camp as an opportunity and an advantage for the main opposition party, DPP Legislator Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said that was not necessarily the case because the PFP would try to attract anti-Ma voters, which means the DPP could also end up losing votes.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CHRIS WANG
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
CAUTION URGED: Xiaohongshu and Douyin — the Chinese version of TikTok — are tools the Chinese government uses for its ‘united front’ propaganda, the MAC said Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) yesterday urged people who use Chinese social media platforms to be cautious of being influenced by Beijing’s “united front” propaganda and undermining Taiwan’s sovereignty. Chiu made the remarks in response to queries about Chinese academic Zhang Weiwei (張維為) saying that as young Taiwanese are fond of interacting on Chinese app Xiaohongshu (小紅書, known as RedNote in English), “after unification with China, it would be easier to govern Taiwan than Hong Kong.” Zhang is professor of international relations at Shanghai’s Fudan University and director of its China Institute. When giving a speech at China’s Wuhan
ENHANCE DETERRENCE: Taiwan has to display ‘fierce resolve’ to defend itself for China to understand that the costs of war outweigh potential gains, Koo said Taiwan’s armed forces must reach a high level of combat readiness by 2027 to effectively deter a potential Chinese invasion, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said in an interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times) published yesterday. His comments came three days after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the US Senate that deterring a Chinese attack on Taiwan requires making a conflict “cost more than what it’s worth.” Rubio made the remarks in response to a question about US policy on Taiwan’s defense from Republican Senator John Cornyn, who said that Chinese
The zero emissions ship Porrima P111 was launched yesterday in Kaohsiung, showcasing the nation’s advancement in green technology, city Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said. The nation last year acquired the Swiss-owned vessel, formerly known as Turanor PlanetSolar, in a bid to boost Taiwan’s technology sector, as well as ecotourism in Palau, Chen said at the ship’s launch ceremony at Singda Harbor. Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr and Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) also attended the event. The original vessel was the first solar-powered ship to circumnavigate the globe in a voyage from 2010 to 2012. Taiwan-based Porrima Inc (保利馬) installed upgrades with