The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is to forgo a presidential primary in favor of nominating a candidate by special committee to avoid internal strife, the party said yesterday.
The announcement came after the KMT Central Standing Committee held a session to establish the makeup of the Central Nomination Committee at its headquarters in Taipei, amid calls for unity by KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫).
Party leadership must facilitate efforts to unite its forces and find a candidate with broad appeal outside the pan-green camp to win the presidential election next year, Chu told a news conference after the meeting.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
The nomination process for KMT legislative candidates would be conducted in three phases on April 22, May 20 and June 18, he said.
The KMT has communicated with former members of the US national security apparatus and Japanese representatives, and has emphasized its desire to remain friendly with the US, Japan and China, he said.
The party underscored its “2D strategy” to enhance national defense and cross-strait dialogue that would protect peace and democracy, Chu said, adding that foreign friends were impressed by the KMT’s platform.
KMT Vice Chairman Andrew Hsia’s (夏立言) two visits to China generated tangible results to help resolve a dispute over Taiwanese agricultural exports and former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is to visit the ancestral tombs of his family in China next week, he said.
The KMT’s endeavor to achieve peace across the Taiwan Strait would be the foundation of its victory in the general election, he said.
Asked about New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi’s (侯友宜) potential candidacy, KMT Culture and Communications Committee director-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said that Hou knows his duty to the party well and will not shrink from it.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Progressive Party Central Standing Committee waived polling requirements for Vice President William Lai (賴清德) as the sole contender in the party’s presidential nomination, clearing a procedural hurdle for the presumptive candidate.
An announcement of Lai’s nomination is expected on April 12, while competitive polling for those seeking to become legislative nominees would be held two days after that, the party said.
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
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
RSS