The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday unveiled its legislators-at-large nomination list, with members from minority groups, experts and advocates in various fields leading the list.
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) topped the 34--member list, followed by Children’s Welfare League Foundation executive director Alicia Wang (王育敏), National Chengchi University finance professor Tseng Chu-wei (曾巨威), Taiwan Organization for Disadvantaged Patients secretary-general Yang Yu-hsing (楊玉欣) and Environmental Protection Administration Deputy Minister Chiu Wen-yen (邱文彥).
Experts and advocates in labor affairs, law, medical science and the arts were also among the first 15 nominees, including National Chung Cheng University labor relations professor Wu Yu-jen (吳育仁), lawyer Lee Kuei-min (李貴敏) and National Taiwan College of Performing Arts professor Chen Pi-han (陳碧涵).
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Only four incumbent legislators are among the first 15 nominees, which are considered to be on the “safe list,” including Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), Pan Wei-kang (潘維剛), Hsu Shao-ping (徐少萍) and Chi Kuo-tung (紀國棟).
Introducing the candidates at a press conference, KMT Culture and Communication Commission Director Chuang Po-chung (莊伯仲) said the nomination list highlighted the KMT’s attention to minorities, as well as labor affairs, cultural, educational and environmental issues, adding that it was making an effort to strike a balance in gender equality and regional influence.
Seventeen of the candidates are male, and 17 are female. About 44 percent of the candidates possess doctorates. Two candidates, Alicia Wang and Yang, are under 40 years old, and about half of the candidates are fresh faces with no political backgrounds.
Former health minister Yaung Chih-liang (楊志良), who had announced his nomination last week, is the 19th candidate on the list.
Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強), deputy executive director of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) re-election campaign, said the list was meant to meet public expectations, and that the KMT sought to reach three goals through the list — respecting expert opinions, cultivating young talent and passing on the KMT’s tradition.
“The public has high expectations for the KMT’s legislators-at-large list. We cannot say the list scores 100 points, but the KMT has put a great deal of effort into seeking talent and reflecting different voices in the legislature,” he said.
However, the presence of Lo and campaign spokesman Yin Wei (殷瑋) at the press conference sparked concern over the campaign office’s role in KMT affairs.
Lo shrugged off concerns that the campaign office had interfered in compiling the list, saying the office would cooperate with legislator-at-large candidates in campaigns for the presidential and legislative elections.
“The legislators-at-large nominations list is a major election affair. The candidates will be participating in campaign activities. The campaign office’s job includes negotiating campaign affairs for the two elections,” he said.
The KMT’s Central Standing Committee approved the list yesterday and the KMT will give final approval on Saturday.
Commenting on the list, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said it recognized the KMT’s nomination of representatives from non-governmental organizations (NGO).
“We would like to commend the KMT’s recognition of NGO representatives and representatives of the underprivileged for the first time. The decision is long -overdue,” DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said.
The inclusion of representatives from groups representing the underprivileged has been a long tradition for the DPP, she said, adding that the party not only drafted its legislators-at-large list out of political considerations, but also to include professionals from different fields.
Meanwhile, DPP spokesperson Kang Yu-cheng (康裕成) confirmed after the party’s Central Standing Committee meeting yesterday that Antonio Hong (鴻義章), the DPP’s legislative candidate in the Aboriginal lowland tribes district, has announced his withdrawal from January’s election.
Hong decided to withdraw because he would like to concentrate on campaigning for Tsai, the DPP’s presidential candidate, since Tsai has a better chance of winning, Kang said, adding that Hong’s resignation has been approved by the DPP and the party currently has no plan to nominate a replacement.
Additional reporting by Chris Wang
‘NO SECURITY RISK’: The Railway Bureau reassured the public that the technicians’ activities were limited to technical guidance and did not involve sensitive systems The Railway Bureau yesterday said it had invited eight Chinese technicians to assist with an airport MRT construction project. The bureau issued the confirmation after an Internet user said Chinese nationals had entered the construction zone of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 project. They asked why “individuals from an enemy state” were allowed access to such a major national infrastructure project, which raised serious concerns over Taiwan’s industrial safety, sensitive systems and information security. The bureau’s Northern Region Engineering Branch Office said subcontractor Taiwan Handle Industrial Co (台灣手把工業) of the Taoyuan airport MRT’s “Contract No. CU05 Project A14 Station Civil, MEP &
A US uncrewed surface vessel (USV) encountered multiple Chinese warships during an autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait, US defense company Seasats said in a statement on Wednesday. Seasats announced that a Lightfish USV had completed the first autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait. Over five days, the USV traversed the entire length of the Strait while constantly monitoring surface vessel traffic, the company said. The Lightfish encountered multiple Chinese warships, one of which was a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Type 056 corvette, it said. The Chinese vessels were operating “well within Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone without transmitting their identity via the
Taiwan is still in the process of assessing the possibility of recruiting workers from Eswatini, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, adding that its goal is to help Eswatini upgrade its vocational training centers. If there are plans to recruit workers from Eswatini, safeguarding national security, protecting public health and ensuring the employment rights of Taiwanese would be prerequisites, Department of West Asian and African Affairs Director-General Yen Chia-liang (顏嘉良) told a news conference. Key considerations would also include filling labor shortages in specific industries, and fostering bilateral professional and technical exchanges, he said. Yen was asked about the progress of labor
The nation’s usually punctual high-speed rail system yesterday was hit by major disruptions after all scheduled services were canceled and replaced with three hourly trains offering only non-reserved seating, affecting more than 200,000 passengers. Preliminary findings indicate the disruption was caused by a faulty power module in a track switch control cabinet, Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) said, adding that as a full system inspection could only be conducted after operations end for the day, a decision on whether normal service would resume today would be announced before the first train departs. During a routine inspection early yesterday, a switch signal abnormality
RSS