With its eye on the December mayoral and county commissioners' elections and in a sign of possible cooperation between the KMT and the PFP against the ruling DPP, the KMT yesterday stated its intention to propose revisions to the Law on Local Government Systems (
Some KMT members, however, expressed opposition to such a proposal.
"If a candidate and his running mate, who belong to different parties, win the election, how will they make appointments fairly according to party representation? What if they disagree with each other? It will surely cause chaos," lawmaker Chen Horng-chi (
Other KMT members, however, disagreed with Chen, saying that the details of further cooperation were negotiable.
"The KMT and the PFP are associated parties. There is plenty of room for electoral cooperation to achieve victory," KMT caucus whip Cheng Yuan-chin (
Echoing Cheng's view, lawmaker Liao Fung-te (
Both PFP spokesman Hwang Yih-jiau (
The KMT, in addition, is likely to propose that electoral victory in the mayoral and commissioner's races depended on winning an absolute majority (
DPP members, however, said the opposition alliance's move was an act of political manipulation, taking advantage of their majority of legislative seats to revise laws any way they wanted to.
"It's their short-term strategy [to cooperate with each other] since they are unlikely to merge as a party in the longer term," DPP legislator Shen Fu-hsiung (
A secret meeting between KMT chairman Lien Chan (
"The party will compete fairly against other parties in accordance with the principles of party politics," Soong said on Sunday, adding that he met with Lien last Friday to express his thanks to the KMT for its decision not to seek reconsideration of a prosecutor's decision not to indict him in the Chung Hsing bills finance case (
Soong had, during the presidential election, faced charges that he embezzled roughly NT$360 million of the KMT's funds.
ESCALATING TENSIONS: The US called for restraint and meaningful dialogue after Beijing threatened Taiwanese independence advocates with the death sentence The US on Monday condemned China’s “escalatory and destabilizing language and actions” toward Taiwan after Beijing last week announced new guidelines to punish supporters of Taiwanese independence. Asked about the guidelines, which included the death sentence for “diehard” independence advocates, US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller said: “We strongly condemn the escalatory and destabilizing language and actions from PRC [People’s Republic of China] officials.” “We continue to urge restraint and no unilateral change to the status quo,” he said at the press briefing. The US urges China to “engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan,” Miller said, adding that “threats and legal
DEATH THREAT: A MAC official said that it has urged Beijing to avoid creating barriers that would impede exchanges across the Strait, but it continues to do so People should avoid unnecessary travel to China after Beijing issued 22 guidelines allowing its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death “Taiwan independence separatists,” the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday as it raised its travel alert for China, including Hong Kong and Macau, to “orange.” The guidelines published last week “severely threaten the personal safety of Taiwanese traveling to China, Hong Kong and Macau,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a news conference in Taipei. “Following a comprehensive assessment, the government considers it necessary to elevate the travel alert to orange from yellow,” Liang said. Beijing has
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. The world’s second-largest economy is beset by a debt crisis in the property sector, persistently low consumption and high unemployment among young people. Policymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall
WATER CONCERNS: The CWA encouraged people to conserve water, as fewer typhoons would bring less rain, and the plum rain season brought in only 60% of average rainfall About two to four typhoons are forecast to come close to Taiwan between now and November, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, as it also forecast that extreme heat would persist throughout the week, only dropping by 1°C after Friday. The number of typhoons is slightly lower than the average of three to five, reflecting a weakening El Nino weather pattern and the possibility of a La Nina pattern approaching, CWA Weather Forecast Center Director Chen Yi-liang (陳怡良) told a news conference in Taipei. While typically fewer typhoons develop under such conditions, their routes would be more likely to pass near