Raising the heat within the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) over the chairmanship election next Saturday, the second of two forums featuring Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
While the first forum last week was relatively non-confrontational, the two competitors used their appearances yesterday to highlight "flaws" in each other's campaign rhetoric.
Like the first last Saturday, yesterday's forum was aired live on six television channels and one radio station from 3pm to 4pm. Ma again delivered the first and last of the four 14-minute speeches yesterday, while Wang delivered the second and third.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
While both men used the first two sessions to counter criticisms lobbed at them in recent weeks, the third and fourth sessions were devoted to questions and answers, with Wang going on the offensive over the possibility of Ma running for president in 2008, his plans for the year-end mayoral and county commissioner elections and Ma's ability to attract younger voters to the party.
Ma also used his time to undercut Wang's claims that his position as legislative speaker would be an asset if he became chairman. Ma in turn questioned Wang's ability to draw younger voters.
Wearing a gray suit and dark pink tie, Wang began his attack by emphasizing that the party chairman did not have to be the KMT's next candidate for president.
Choosing someone who could guarantee success in 2008 was one of the most important issues in the election, Wang said, adding that the next chairman had to be able to support the best candidate for the job -- regardless of who it would be.
"Vice Chairman Ma, if you become the next party chairman, does that mean you will make yourself a candidate in 2008?" Wang asked in his opening speech.
In reply, Ma said the important thing was to focus on choosing the party's next chairman, and then think about the presidential race.
"If my party comrades do not support me, Ma Ying-jeou, nor the ideals that I just referred to [in my speech], then how can I run for anything? I wouldn't have a chance," Ma said.
Wang also attacked Ma yesterday for his campaign theme -- that he could attract younger voters to the party.
Young people make up only a small portion of the KMT membership -- about 7.7 percent -- while 22.7 percent of party members are under the age of 40, Wang said, though he did not define the age limit of a "young person."
However, he said, in Taipei City, only 16,000 of the party's 81,000 members in Taipei were young voters.
"In this way, we can see that in a place where even Ma has been mayor for seven years, the number of young people does not even reach the party's average rate of youth membership. We must consider how the number of younger party members can be increased nationwide," Wang said.
In response, Ma questioned Wang on his own plans to pull in younger talent.
"I have heard [Legislative] Speaker Wang mention plans for establishing [the program] `100,000 youths, 100,000 troops,' but I have never heard him say how he will attract these 100,000 youths," Ma said.
Both vice chairmen also spoke about the issue of "nominal" party members.
The Ma camp is concerned that large numbers of "nominal" party members -- non-paying members who will be permitted to vote -- will be carted to the poll in large numbers by the Wang camp to influence the outcome. He has also insisted in the past week that surveillance cameras should be placed in polling stations.
Adding to the dispute, it was discovered on Thursday that the party's regional headquarters had sent out voting notices to 6,818 party members in Yunlin County, of which KMT headquarters later decided only about 1,800 were entitled to vote.
"The KMT is still appealing one of its two presidential election lawsuits. What right do we have to do this if our own election has discrepancies?" Ma asked.
He appealed to party workers to be vigilant in monitoring the election process.
Wang then hinted that Ma did not have faith in the party's employees.
"In regard to the recent `nominal party member' matter, we should all trust in our party employees and their management of the situation. We should not make direct comments that hurt our party's members," he said.
Interaction between Wang and Ma was a focus of attention prior to the presentations. While the two vice chairmen did not repeat their widely seen hug from last week's forum, the two seemed friendly as they shook hands for the media.
Speaking after the forum, Ma seemed unconcerned about the attacks on his campaign by Wang during the forum.
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