DPP welcomes membership of former independent VP Chen Chien-jen

Taipei, Feb. 22 (CNA) The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) on Tuesday confirmed that former Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) had joined its ranks and was returning to active politics.

Following reports in the local media about Chen's recent membership in the DPP, party spokesman Chou Chiang-chieh (周江杰) said the DPP always welcomes members who share its values and President Tsai Ing-wen's (蔡英文's) vision for Taiwan's development.

Chen, a renowned public health scholar at Academia Sinica in Taipei, served as vice president of Taiwan from 2016 to 2020 in Tsai's administration, but he remained an independent politician.

According to the local weekly Mirror Media magazine, Chen late last year accepted President Tsai's invitation to join in the DPP, which has given the party a strategic boost ahead of the Nov. 26 nationwide local government elections.

Citing high-level DPP sources, the magazine said Chen may be named as the DPP's mayoral candidate in Taipei, head of the country's Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), or even as premier.

Asked Tuesday whether Chen would replace the incumbent CECC head Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said there was no such plan.