Newly nominated Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday said he would take a three-month leave of absence from his job as New Taipei City mayor, starting today, to focus on his campaign.
New Taipei City Deputy Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) will stand in for Chu during his absence.
Chu, who is only 10 months into his second four-year term, made the announcement after a meeting of the New Taipei City Council in the morning, which had been brought ahead from today.
Photo: CNA
“I was nominated on Saturday to represent the KMT in next year’s presidential election, for which I must apologize to every resident of the city because I had pledged on more than one occasion that I would not join the race,” Chu said.
“It is a painful, but necessary decision that needed to be made at such a critical moment,” he said.
Chu’s decision to throw his hat into the ring for the Jan. 16 presidential election has triggered a wave of criticism from the public and some inside the KMT, largely because of his oft-repeated promise to serve out his term as mayor.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tuan Yi-kang’s (段宜康) on Sept. 26 estimated that Chu had made the promise 24 times between June last year and May.
Chu, who also serves as KMT chairman, said a presidential election concerns a nation’s future and its major policies, and that he must take on the responsibility of offering the public a healthier democracy.
Given the nearness of the election, Chu said he had asked his administrative officials to stand fast at their posts and work as a team.
“During this interim period, Deputy Mayor Hou will face a heavy workload, but my administration is confident of its ability to go a good job governing the municipality,” Chu said.
He said he would remain in close contact with his team through various channels, including mobile messaging app Line.
If elected president, he plans to expand many of his successful policies and experiences as mayor on a nationwide scale, Chu said.
“I also plan to bring the resources of the central government back to the city,” he added.
In a move to defuse criticism about his decision to enter the presidential race without stepping down as mayor, Chu said it is customary, at home and abroad, for politicians to run for new offices without resigning from their current posts.
“It is my belief that as long as a candidate’s team is capable of doing a good job, there is no reason why he cannot maintain stability in the city and continue to strive for the betterment of his city,” Chu said.
New Taipei City Government Information Department Director Lin Chieh-yu (林芥佑) said Chu decided not to accept a salary during his leave of absence.
“An estimated NT$570,000 due the mayor over the next three months is to be donated to the city government’s coffers,” Lin said.
Typhoon Usagi yesterday had weakened into a tropical storm, but a land warning issued by the Central Weather Administration (CWA) was still in effect in four areas in southern Taiwan. As of 5pm yesterday, Tropical Storm Usagi was over waters 120km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the southernmost tip of Taiwan proper, and was moving north at 9kph, CWA data showed. The storm was expected to veer northeast later yesterday. It had maximum sustained winds of 101kph, with gusts of up to 126kph, the data showed. The CWA urged residents of Kaohsiung, Pingtung County, Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春) to remain alert to
ONE LAST TALK: While Xi said that Taiwan was a ‘red line,’ Biden, in what is likely his last meeting with Xi as president, called for an end to China’s military activity around Taiwan China’s military intimidation and economic coercion against Taiwan are the main causes of tensions that are destabilizing peace in the Taiwan Strait, Taipei said yesterday while thanking US President Joe Biden for expressing Washington’s firm stance of maintaining peace and stability in the region. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met on Saturday for their third meeting and their first talks in seven months on the sidelines of the APEC forum in Lima, Peru. It was likely Biden’s last meeting as president with Xi. During their conversation, Biden reiterated the US’ opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” from either
Taiwan would participate in the 2026 APEC summit to be hosted by China after Beijing promised it would ensure the personal safety of attendees, Taiwanese national security sources said yesterday. The APEC Leaders’ Machu Picchu Declaration announced yesterday said that China would host the APEC summit in 2026. Beijing proposed hosting the summit shortly before this year’s gathering began on Friday, a national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Many APEC members expressed concerns about China hosting the event and said that prior communication over the decision was insufficient, the official said. Taiwan brought up concerns about legal “guidelines” China announced in
MEET AND GREET: The White House, which called the interaction ‘just a handshake,’ did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Biden planned to visit Taiwan’s envoy to the APEC summit, Lin Hsin-i (林信義), on Friday invited US President Joe Biden to visit Taiwan. During the APEC Leaders’ Informal Dialogue, Lin, who represented President William Lai (賴清德) at the summit, spoke with Biden and expressed gratitude to the outgoing US president for his contribution to improving bilateral ties between Taipei and Washington over the past four years, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Lin and Biden exchanged views during the conversation, with Lin extending an invitation to Biden to visit Taiwan, it said. Biden is to step down in January next year, when US president-elect Donald Trump is
RSS