Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Taipei city councilor candidates Huang Ching-ying and Yang Bao-zheng (楊寶楨) have sparked controversy after posting comments online that were allegedly disrespectful toward Control Yuan President Chen Chu (陳菊).
Huang on Facebook questioned an investigation report published by the Control Yuan, saying that the Control Yuan did not understand the truth and essence of the subject.
Yang, who is also a TPP spokeswoman, left a comment under the post, allegedly insinuating that Chen is “heavy,” to which Huang replied “the truth should be properly investigated no matter how heavy.”
Photo: Tsai Ssu-pei, Taipei Times
Another candidate for Taipei city councilor, Chen Chia-hsing (陳嘉行), said the comments discriminated against female body types.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), the TPP’s chairman, said that “these things should not be overly fussed about,” adding that he hoped “society could be more harmonized.”
Asked whether he felt the need to apologize for once calling Chen a “fatter [former Kaohsiung mayor] Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜),” Ko said that the comment should be laughed off and there was no need to read too much into it.
Separately, Ko is to cycle from Taipei to Kaohsiung on Monday next week. The TPP plans to invite local election candidates to join Ko on the trip.
Taipei City Councilor Lin Ying-meng (林穎孟) asked why a sports event grant of NT$500,000 (US$17,966) funded by the Taipei Department of Sports was being used to fund a TPP campaign event.
The Department of Sports subsidizes various sports associations every year, with NT$7.2 million granted in the first quarter this year, Ko said.
“I like cycling, so I signed up for an event held by the bike association — that is all,” Ko said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
Instead of threatening tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, the US should try to reinforce cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductor development to take on challenges from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a Taiwanese think tank said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board import duties of 32 percent on Taiwan-made goods and levy a separate tariff on semiconductors, which Taiwan is hoping to avoid. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), a National Science and Technology Council think tank, said that US efforts should focus on containing China’s semiconductor rise rather than impairing Taiwan. “Without
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the