New Power Party (NPP) Chairman Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) yesterday said that his responsibility is to keep Legislator Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) in the Legislative Yuan next year, not to send him to the Presidential Office.
Hsu made the remarks during a news event at the NPP’s headquarters in Taipei when asked if the party would nominate Huang as its candidate for next year’s presidential election.
On Tuesday, former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) wrote on Facebook that he had met with Hsu, and the party has not ruled out the option of nominating its own candidate.
Photo: Chiu Shu-yu, Taipei Times
Whether to put forth a candidate has been an ongoing discussion at the party’s decisionmaking committee, Hsu said.
Factors that must be considered include whether it can find an ideal candidate, he said, adding that if the committee decides that the party should front a candidate, it would submit a proposal to the NPP national congress for confirmation.
Asked if Huang could be an ideal option, Hsu said: “It is my responsibility as chairman to send him into the legislature ... not Ketagalan Boulevard.”
As “one of President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) biggest fans,” Hsu said that if the administration is willing to collaborate with the NPP to promote bills in the legislature, then the party would be inclined to support her, he said.
The Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) goal of defending the nation against China is compatible with the NPP’s, which is to protect Taiwan and promote policy reforms, he said.
Tsai’s plan to amend the Constitution and pass a minimum wage law are also in line with the NPP’s aims, Hsu said, adding that he hopes the two parties could collaborate to promote them in the next legislative session, which begins next month.
He said he has expressed willingness to collaborate with the DPP so many times that he was starting to feel “embarrassed,” but he is still waiting for a response.
DPP Chairman Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said he believes that both parties share the same long-term goals, although they might be moving at different paces.
Hopefully, they could all support Tsai’s re-election bid, Cho said, adding that he has been preparing for talks with the NPP.
Additional reporting by CNA
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three
RSS