Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday announced that he has registered a new political party that would “use ‘Taiwan’ as its name and the people as its foundation.”
With the forming of the new party — whose Chinese-language name (台灣民眾黨) roughly translates to “Taiwan people’s party,” an official English name is to be announced on Tuesday next week — Ko said that he hoped to give Taiwanese a choice other than the pan-blue and pan-green camps.
The new party would prioritize professionalism and respect for the will of the people in its policymaking, he said, adding that it would work diligently and free of corruption.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Ko was joined by Taipei City Government deputy spokeswoman Huang Ching-ying and Taipei City councilors Chung Hsiao-ping (鍾小平) and Hsu Li-hsin (徐立信) when making the announcement in the morning at Taipei City Hall.
Ko, who political pundits have speculated might run in next year’s presidential election, said that when he first ran for mayor in 2014 as an independent, he argued that changing the nation’s political culture must start with the capital.
Since then, he has maintained that an administration should focus seriously only on what needs to be done, he added.
Ko said that before he had resolved to run for mayor, he first joined a study group at the Hsin Kang Foundation of Culture and Education to engage the public at a cultural level.
In the five years since, as mayor he has participated in the annual Dajia Matsu Pilgrimage and joined a study group at the foundation again, he said, adding that the experiences reminded him of his original aspirations.
“Governance is not difficult, you just need to face your conscience. Holding office is not difficult if you always remember your original intentions,” Ko said. “People need to see the practical effects of politics in their everyday lives.”
Responding to criticism that he lacks a core ideology, Ko said that his political philosophy was aimed at “what benefits Taiwan as a whole, and what provides the greatest well-being for Taiwanese.”
Seeking either Taiwanese independence or unification with China, or advocating the so-called “1992 consensus,” does not constitute a core ideology, he said.
The “1992 consensus” — a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
Taiwan’s political system has been damaged since 2000, before which the KMT’s firm grip on government meant that it could focus on economic development, Ko said.
In the past, the KMT had talented officials like former minister of finance Lee Kuo-ting (李國鼎) and former premier Sun Yun-suan (孫運璿) to handle economic policies, he said.
“However, in the past few years things such as the new Shenao Power Plant, a project worth more than NT$10 billion [US$320.7 million], have been axed overnight,” Ko said. “They say Taiwan’s power supply is adequate. What a joke!”
Ko said that he visited a coal-fired power plant in Yokohama, Japan, and saw no noise or pollution from the facility.
“It is not about coal being clean or dirty, it is about people being clean or dirty,” he said.
Ko expressed hope to see universal values such as the rule of law, human rights protections, freedom and democracy continue to flourish in Taiwan, saying that freedom was based on tolerance.
Taiwan has never been a nation that follows the rule of law, because the law is only consulted here, not respected, he said.
Ko said that while he did not see himself as a leader or influencer, he has worked hard and loved the people, adding that he felt that he has had a good track record in office.
Later yesterday, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that parties that are “independence-leaning and Republic of China-leaning have a shared responsibility to protect Taiwan’s democracy.”
Democracy is the biggest difference between Taiwan and China, she said, adding that healthy political competition could better address public needs and diversify the nation’s democracy.
The Democratic Progressive Party and the KMT separately said that they respected people’s constitutional right to establish parties.
Ko’s new party shares its Chinese name with one founded on July 10, 1927, during the Japanese colonial era by physician and social activist Chiang Wei-shui (蔣渭水), who Ko has called his hero.
The Chiang Wei-shui Cultural Foundation called on Ko to reconsider the name of his party, saying that the Taiwan People’s Party is a part of the nation’s cultural heritage, as it was Taiwan’s first political party.
Chiang’s party was dissolved in August 1931.
The foundation said that it hoped anyone invoking Chiang’s name “truly stands for political freedom, economic liberation and social equality, just as he did.”
Additional reporting by Su Yung-yao, Yang Chun-hui, Shih Hsiao-kuang and Ling Mei-hsueh
TRAGEDY STRIKES TAIPEI: The suspect died after falling off a building after he threw smoke grenades into Taipei Main Station and went on a killing spree in Zhongshan A 27-year-old suspect allegedly threw smoke grenades in Taipei Main Station and then proceeded to Zhongshan MRT Station in a random killing spree that resulted in the death of the suspect and two other civilians, and seven injured, including one in critical condition, as of press time last night. The suspect, identified as a man surnamed Chang Wen (張文), allegedly began the attack at Taipei Main Station, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that it received a report at 5:24pm that smoke grenades had been thrown in the station. One man in his 50s was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest
SAFETY FIRST: Double the number of police were deployed at the Taipei Marathon, while other cities released plans to bolster public event safety Authorities across Taiwan have stepped up security measures ahead of Christmas and New Year events, following a knife and smoke bomb attack in Taipei on Friday that left four people dead and 11 injured. In a bid to prevent potential copycat incidents, police deployments have been expanded for large gatherings, transport hubs, and other crowded public spaces, according to official statements from police and city authorities. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said the city has “comprehensively raised security readiness” in crowded areas, increased police deployments with armed officers, and intensified patrols during weekends and nighttime hours. For large-scale events, security checkpoints and explosives
A car bomb killed a senior Russian general in southern Moscow yesterday morning, the latest high-profile army figure to be blown up in a blast that came just hours after Russian and Ukrainian delegates held separate talks in Miami on a plan to end the war. Kyiv has not commented on the incident, but Russian investigators said they were probing whether the blast was “linked” to “Ukrainian special forces.” The attack was similar to other assassinations of generals and pro-war figures that have either been claimed, or are widely believed to have been orchestrated, by Ukraine. Russian Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, 56, head
PUBLIC SAFETY: The premier said that security would be tightened in transport hubs, while President Lai commended the public for their bravery The government is to deploy more police, including rapid response units, in crowded public areas to ensure a swift response to any threats, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after a knife attack killed three people and injured 11 in Taipei the previous day. Lai made the remarks following a briefing by the National Police Agency on the progress of the investigation, saying that the attack underscored the importance of cooperation in public security between the central and local governments. The attack unfolded in the early evening on Friday around Taipei Main Station’s M7 exit and later near the Taipei MRT’s Zhongshan
RSS