Hsieh puts political career on the line

A supporter wipes tears as he shakes hands with defeated Democratic Progressive Party legislative candidate Luo Wen-chia during his visit to a traditional market on Linjiang Street in Taipei yesterday. PHOTO: LIAO CHEN-HUEI, TAIPEI TIMES

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday put his career on the line, saying he would quit politics if he loses the presidential election in March.

"I will be fully responsible for the March election," Hsieh said.

The DPP suffered a bruising defeat in Saturday's legislative elections, obtaining only 27 out of 113 legislative seats.

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) garnered 81 seats, securing a comfortable two-thirds majority in the legislature.

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) resigned on Saturday night as party chairman to shoulder the responsibility.

Hsieh expected to take over the position, pending the approval of the party's Central Executive Committee, which is scheduled to meet today.

Hsieh reporters in Taipei yesterday that it was his "inescapable responsibility" to take over the party's helm for the sake of preserving the hope of Taiwan's democracy and survival.

While Hsieh said he respected the choice of the people in Saturday's elections, he added that it would be a crisis in the country's democratic development if the legislature were controlled by a single party.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung, left, talks to the press yesterday after a meeting with People First Party Chairman James Soong, right. PHOTO: CNA

While worried that the KMT's momentum following Saturday's elections could carry over into March, Hsieh said the DPP must humbly reflect on its approach and attract the enthusiasm of voters to prevent such a scenario from becoming reality.

Hsieh Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟) said that Hsieh told his campaign team after the election results were announced on Saturday night that everybody must prepare themselves for "a fight to win or die" and "cut off all avenues of retreat."

In related news, following Chen's resignation, former DPP chairman Yu Shyi-kun stepped down yesterday as commander-in-chief of Hsieh's campaign headquarters and three other party positions.

Yu said Hsieh would dictate future campaign strategy and Yu would do his best to campaign for Hsieh if the latter needed help.

At a rally called "shouldering responsibility for Taiwan" at Kaohsiung's Glory Pier (光榮碼頭) last night, Hsieh outlined his "Happy Economy" policy, a key part of his manifesto for the election.

Countering Ma's comments that his policy meddled with the free market, Hsieh said providing a stable economy was the inescapable responsibility of a government.

"Economic hardships, like housing and employment difficulties, cannot be termed `free market' -- they are failures on the part of the government to ensure the quality of life for its people," he said. "The KMT did not win the election because they are a particularly good party, but because the DPP had not done its job well. We heard and thank the people for giving us a warning and a lesson; the stronger the wind ahead, the more I must move forward."

At a separate setting yesterday, KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) urged party members not to be too excited about the party's victory in the elections and pledged that the party would not abuse its power as the dominant party in the legislature.

"`Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely.' The KMT should remember this saying. If we are too arrogant with victory, we will lose the presidential election," Ma said yesterday while visiting the mausoleum of former president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) in Taoyuan County.

With the support of four Non-Partisan Solidarity Union legislators, the KMT would have a three-quarters majority and could put constitutional amendments to a referendum.

Welcoming party's victory with caution, Ma promised not to use the legislative power to initiate another motion to recall Chen and pledged to start a new era if the party won the presidential election in March.

"We want to present people a completely new image. It will not be the restoration of old times if we regain power in March. Instead, it will be the beginning of a new era," Ma said.

Ma the party would make the necessary preparations for the new legislature, which will begin in two weeks.

KMT Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) said on Saturday night the party would support Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) to continue serving as the legislative leader.

The party will select the vice speaker through what Wu said would be a "democratic mechanism" among some hopefuls, including KMT legislators Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順).

The victory of the pan-blue camp in the legislative elections also brought attention to the issue of the merger of the KMT and the People First Party (PFP), as the two parties worked closer during the elections via a KMT-PFP joint nomination mechanism.

Both Wu Poh-hsiung and PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) yesterday pledged to continue cooperating.

"We won't discuss this issue today ... We will wait and see," Soong said yesterday during the visit to Chiang's resting place.

The KMT-PFP alliance nominated six legislative candidates while registering legislator-at-large candidates under the KMT.

Five of the six PFP legislative candidates grabbed seats in the elections.

The New Party, also a member of the pan-blue camp, however, said that despite its poor performance in the elections it would not seek to merge with the KMT.

The party fielded 10 legislator-at-large candidates, but none made it to the Legislative Yuan, as the party only received 4 percent of votes.

New Party Chairman Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明), who also visited Chiang's tomb yesterday, said the party would continue to exist and would not consider merging with the KMT.