The Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) Central Standing Committee yesterday elected Keelung Mayor Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) as the party’s acting chairman, after President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) stepped down from the party’s top post over the DPP’s bruising defeat in Saturday’s nine-in-one elections.
Former DPP secretary-general Hung Yao-fu (洪耀福), who also stepped down from his post, told reporters after the committee meeting that Lin was chosen for his extensive experience and good rapport with his colleagues.
“Lin began working with the party as a junior staff member and has worked in a number of different positions including vice secretary-general. He is familiar with party affairs and would adapt to the new role quickly,” Hung said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Lin was elected in a unanimous vote, Hung added.
“The party needs me at this difficult time, so I will be brave and take that responsibility,” Lin told a news conference afterward.
The DPP’s defeat suggested that there is great room for improvement and the party must thoroughly reflect on its mistakes, he said.
“The problem does not lie in a lack of younger politicians in leadership positions, but in a need to truly understand our mistakes and sharing the responsibility in fixing them,” Lin added.
The party must ensure government stability while improving its performance, he said, calling for solidarity and urging party members to remain ambitious.
“Such a difficult time requires us to work together more than ever. We must support each other, comfort and encourage our supporters, and never lose our conviction,” Lin said.
His priorities are to organize the election for a new chairman and the nomination of two candidates for a legislative by-elections, he said.
The by-elections are expected to be held in Taipei and Tainan in January after DPP Legislator Pasuya Yao (姚文智) resigned during his campaign for Taipei mayor and DPP legislator Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) was elected Tainan mayor.
The committee also decided to form a team to coordinate work on the nomination for the by-elections, DPP spokesman Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬) said.
Its members include Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), who was named convener, DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬) and himself, Cheng Yun-peng said.
As the Central Election Commission might announce the details of the by-elections as soon as tomorrow, candidates should move their household registration to the electoral district where they plan to stand for election by that time if they are from a different district, he said.
The team would consult with likely candidates and ensure that their household registrations are in the district they want to represent, he added.
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
The Civil Aviation Administration yesterday said that it is considering punishments for China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines for making hard landings and overworking their cabin crew when the nation was hit by Typhoon Kong-rey in October last year. The civil aviation authority launched an investigation after media reported that many airlines were forced to divert their flights to different airports or go around after failing to land when the typhoon affected the nation on Oct. 30 and 31 last year. The agency reviewed 503 flights dispatched by Taiwanese airlines during those two days, as well as weather data, flight hours
Three people have had their citizenship revoked after authorities confirmed that they hold Chinese ID cards, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said yesterday. Two of the three people were featured in a recent video about Beijing’s “united front” tactics by YouTuber Pa Chiung (八炯) and Taiwanese rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源), including Su Shi-en (蘇士恩), who displayed a Chinese ID card in the video, and taekwondo athlete Lee Tung-hsien (李東憲), who mentioned he had obtained a Chinese ID card in a telephone call with Chen, Liang told the council’s weekly news conference. Lee, who reportedly worked in
RSS