Several Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) politicians continued to hint at a possible presidential run over the weekend, with only two months left before party primaries.
In one of his strongest signals yet, former premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said on Saturday he believed a presidential bid would fulfill his ideals, adding that “it is important that ideals are fulfilled every day.”
The 2008 DPP vice presidential nominee denied, however, that he had a timetable for the announcement, contrary to media reports that he could make a declaration on March 6, when his book and video tour ends.
Photo: Lin Shen-hsu, Taipei Times
Su traveled to shore up support in the south yesterday, after joining a local dental association for lunch. On Saturday, he went on a tour with conservation groups to protected wetlands in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Wugu District. Not more than two steps behind him, another former premier, Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), on Thursday said in a TV interview to be aired tonight that he was also “open” to the idea of a presidential bid, but said that DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was currently a more popular candidate.
“Tsai’s poll ratings are currently higher,” he told Era TV. “If she doesn’t want to run, then [I’ll] consider it.”
While Tsai has not spoken publicly on her position on a presidential bid, she is understood to also be considering the idea, spurred on by grassroots supporters and senior party officials.
Yesterday she told a DPP event for the Tainan legislative by--elections that she was confident the DPP would “take back power” in the Presidential Office next year, after contending that the DPP has seen a resurgence since 2008, when she took the position of chairperson
The DPP plans to use telephone polls to settle the primaries, a controversial decision that has attracted opposition from many party supporters.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
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