Lien is `not interested' in KMT chairmanship race

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) said yesterday that he has no wish to enter the race for the KMT chairmanship, even as he chastised his would-be successors for not explaining clearly their views on cross-strait relations, a strategy for the year-end mayoral and county commissioner elections and "populism."

Expressing surprise at Lien's comments, chairmanship candidate Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-Jeou (馬英九) yesterday picked up the official forms needed to register his candidacy amid a throng of Lien supporters.

Meanwhile, his competitor, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), said yesterday that unlike Ma, he did not take Lien's comments to mean that Lien would not run in the July 16 election.

The movement calling for Lien to continue on as the KMT's leader by running in the party's chairmanship election reached a head yesterday morning, during the KMT's weekly Central Standing Committee meeting.

"Wang needs to take care of the legislature, and Ma needs to consider the city government. Chairman Lien has no other duties; thus, he should take on the historical burden of being the KMT's next chairman and institute reforms so that we can win [the 2008 presidential elections]," KMT Vice Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) said at the meeting. Chiang was the spokesman for the 21 other committee members who signed a petition asking Lien to run.

The petition was started by party Legislator Hou Tsai-feng (侯彩鳳). While Lien has said on numerous occasions that he has not thought of taking on another term as the KMT's chairman, a growing number of supporters have called for his re-election.

Besides petition, the movement also manifested itself in a small throng of elderly KMT supporters who kneeled in supplication in the KMT's lobby after the meeting, calling on "Brother Chan" to run again for the chairmanship.

Speaking response to the petition, Lien said that he had no wish to enter the chairmanship race. The support for his continued stay in the post, Lien said, was due to the lack of clarity in Wang's and Ma's vision for the party.

"I have no wish to enter the election," Lien said yesterday at the closed-door meeting, according to KMT spokeswoman Cheng Li-wen (鄭麗文) after the meeting.

"I am surprised the outcry for my re-election. Within the party, there are comrades who feel more confident and secure of my past methods, but my time is up. I am neither a lead nor supporting character in this process of developing new political leaders," Lien said, adding that he did, however, understand the worries of his supporters, according to Cheng.

"I have no wish to enter the election, but many people are worried about the future. As of yet, we have not seen either of the candidates give a clear explanation or plan for dealing with important issues, such as the direction of the party, cross-strait relations, their strategy for winning the year-end county magistrate and mayoral elections or how to deal with party assets," Lien said, according to Cheng.

Speaking morning, Ma said that he was not surprised by Lien's comment, as he had known all along that Lien did not intend to run.

In contrast however, Wang had a different interpretation.

"Lien said that he has no intention to run. That does mean, however, that he will not enter the race," Wang said yesterday.

While Ma has maintained since he announced his candidacy in April that he intends to run regardless of whether Lien joins the race or not, Wang has said that he will drop out of the race in the event that Lien runs.