New mayors officially took office in Taiwan's two biggest
cities, Taipei and Kaohsiung, on Monday, amid a flurry of
controversy.
In Taipei, Hau Long-bin assumed authority, while Chen Chu took
office in Kaohsiung.
Ma Ying-jeou left his post as Taipei mayor on Monday. He will
hence serve only as chairman of the Kuomintang Party (KMT).
He was replaced by fellow KMT member Hau Long-bin who beat his
main rival Frank Hsieh of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)
with 54 percent of the vote in the election on Dec. 9.
Chen Chu, of the DPP, narrowly won the race with KMT's Huang
Chun-ying for the mayoralty of the southern city of Kaohsiung, with
49 percent of the vote.
Controversy still surrounds the election in Kaohsiung with
allegations of vote-buying during the election. KMT candidate Huang
has refused to acknowledge his defeat and has threatened to
challenge the election result in court.
(Xinhua News Agency December 25, 2006)