Wu Zongxian returns to New Taipei council, calls for expanded northern Taiwan cooperation platform

Wu Zongxian returned to New Taipei City Council, where he previously served as director of the city government’s Legal Affairs Bureau, and used the visit to promote a broader northern Taiwan cooperation framework. The Kuomintang candidate for Yilan county chief met with the council’s party caucus and was photographed with New Taipei Mayor Hou You-yi, Council Speaker Chiang Ken-huang and other Kuomintang figures.

Chiang and caucus secretary-general Chen Yi-jun said the group would support both New Taipei mayoral candidate Lee Chuan-chiao and Wu. They proposed expanding the existing Keelung-Taipei-New Taipei-Taoyuan cooperation platform into “Northern Taiwan 4+1,” with Yilan joining regional governance efforts.

The proposed framework would deepen cooperation on transport, industry, young talent, tourism, disaster prevention and response, healthcare and long-term care. Huang Hsin-hua, who leads the Kuomintang caucus policy think tank, said the platform was established in 2023 and accumulated 103 cooperative projects in its first year. Of those, 33 had been completed and 70 remained underway.

Wu said he had taken part in cross-city governance and began advocating the expanded platform early in the election campaign. He wants the counties and cities to build long-term mechanisms covering industrial supply chains, youth recruitment, tourism promotion, medical and elder care, disaster response and public transport.

He also pointed to the planned extension of high-speed rail to Yilan, saying the region should prepare its industrial and talent strategies in advance. The aim, he said, is to turn increased movement brought by improved transport into opportunities for industry, employment and tourism.

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Northern Taiwan 4+1