Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Trong Chai (
In a written statement, Chai, a pro-independence DPP stalwart, said it was his mission to enter the chairmanship race to "safeguard the DPP's founding ideals and ensure that the DPP will continue to be in power after 2008."
Meanwhile, Presidential Office officials said yesterday that Presidential Office Secretary-General Yu Shyi-kun may also consider running for the post of DPP chairman if he receives the clear and full support of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
Since Vice President Annette Lu (
Some political commentators have said the temporary leader would not be the next official party chairperson because it has been customary for the acting chairperson not to run for the post.
They also said that the president intends to have one of his proteges join the election race and that Yu is one of the potential candidates.
Yesterday, Yu met briefly with Chen at the Presidential Office. Although Yu kept silent about the content of the discussion, sources said that Yu has been asking around to gauge opinion on his joining the race.
Lu clarified her stance yesterday, saying that she would not run. Lu also expressed her encouragement for Yu's decision.
"I think it's a good idea," Lu said.
Yu has been urged by some high-ranking party officials to run for chairman. Yu promised to think it over.
Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman Chang Chun-hsiung (
Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen (
Giving a thumbs-up to Chai's suitability for the position, Mark Chen commended Chai as a "committed person" who would be able to tackle the chaos the party is facing.
"I know Chai very well. He is the kind of person who fully commits himself to things he feels passionate about. His personality is very suitable for this job," the foreign minister told reporters on Tuesday night during a visit with a delegation of ambassadors to Nantou County.
Additional reporting by Chang Yun-ping
TRAGEDY: An expert said that the incident was uncommon as the chance of a ground crew member being sucked into an IDF engine was ‘minuscule’ A master sergeant yesterday morning died after she was sucked into an engine during a routine inspection of a fighter jet at an air base in Taichung, the Air Force Command Headquarters said. The officer, surnamed Hu (胡), was conducting final landing checks at Ching Chuan Kang (清泉崗) Air Base when she was pulled into the jet’s engine for unknown reasons, the air force said in a news release. She was transported to a hospital for emergency treatment, but could not be revived, it said. The air force expressed its deepest sympathies over the incident, and vowed to work with authorities as they
A tourist who was struck and injured by a train in a scenic area of New Taipei City’s Pingsi District (平溪) on Monday might be fined for trespassing on the tracks, the Railway Police Bureau said yesterday. The New Taipei City Fire Department said it received a call at 4:37pm on Monday about an incident in Shifen (十分), a tourist destination on the Pingsi Railway Line. After arriving on the scene, paramedics treated a woman in her 30s for a 3cm to 5cm laceration on her head, the department said. She was taken to a hospital in Keelung, it said. Surveillance footage from a
Police have issued warnings against traveling to Cambodia or Thailand when others have paid for the travel fare in light of increasing cases of teenagers, middle-aged and elderly people being tricked into traveling to these countries and then being held for ransom. Recounting their ordeal, one victim on Monday said she was asked by a friend to visit Thailand and help set up a bank account there, for which they would be paid NT$70,000 to NT$100,000 (US$2,136 to US$3,051). The victim said she had not found it strange that her friend was not coming along on the trip, adding that when she
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
RSS