President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) announced yesterday he would run in the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman election on July 26 to push for closer cooperation between the government and the party.
“I am prepared to join the next KMT chairmanship election, to again lead this party that has established and protected the Republic of China and to continue party reform ... I have decided to run in the party chairman’s election not to expand my power, but to fulfill my responsibility,” Ma said at a press conference at KMT headquarters yesterday afternoon.
Ma, accompanied by KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) and top party officials, thanked Wu for his long-term support and for taking over as KMT chairman after Ma stepped down over the mayoral special allowance fund case.
PHOTO: PICHI CHUANG, REUTERS
Wu said he would not run in the election. He said Ma had told him about his intention to run for the chairmanship two days ago. Wu said he would cooperate by not running in the election.
“I am under tremendous stress these days ... I’ve made it clear that it would be impossible for me to compete with President Ma in the election,” Wu said.
Ma and Wu had planned to finalize the issue next Monday when registration opens for the party’s chairmanship election, but decided to hold a joint press conference yesterday to explain the issue after speculation mounted over a power struggle between the two.
Wu yesterday said he had brought up the KMT chairmanship with Ma in April last year and had said he had no intention of getting involved in any power struggles.
Taking over as KMT chairman two years ago was not part of his plan, Wu said, adding that he was grateful for cross-strait developments and the victories in legislative and presidential elections that he helped the party achieve.
“I have no intention of competing with anyone and I hope my decision today will help [the party] turn to the next generation. A 70-year-old man should know when to quit,” Wu said.
Ma is 59 years old.
Ma later confirmed Wu had consulted with him in April last year about the possibility of his taking over the party chairmanship shortly after he won the presidential election, but he had not thought it would be necessary to double as party chairman.
Wu mentioned the issue again last September and the two agreed to discuss it this month.
Ma yesterday denied that the lack of cooperation between the party and the government prompted him to change his mind, and reiterated that taking over the chairmanship would help the government function more smoothly.
When asked to comment on his previous opposition to the idea of the president doubling as party chairman, Ma said no laws banned the president from doing so.
“I thought it would be unnecessary [to double as KMT chairman] when I took office last year, but I now believe that the party and the government should fully cooperate as we have faced various challenges over the past year,” Ma said.
As to the forum between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party, Ma declined to confirm whether he would attend and meet Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) in his capacity as KMT chairman.
The KMT chairman election is scheduled for July 26 and the new chairman will formally take over the position on Sept. 12.
KMT caucus deputy secretary-general Lu Hsueh-chang (呂學樟) said yesterday the party should still complete its democratic procedures to elect its next chairman. Another caucus deputy secretary-general, John Wu (吳志揚), son of Wu Poh-hsiung, said his father was glad to hand over the position to the president.
KMT Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) held a different view, expressing concern about the impact of Ma’s decision. Now the president would enjoy absolute power and no one would be able to influence his decisions, she said.
“He can do whatever he wants,” Lo said. “No one can control him anyway. He now becomes the most powerful person in Taiwan.”
At a separate setting yesterday, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that after Ma becomes KMT chairman, Taiwan’s democratic system would be in danger because the system of checks and balances would totally lose efficacy. Only referendums would remain to check Ma’s power, she said.
DPP Legislator Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) said the spirit of democracy lies in the division of power, but Ma wants to control the government, the military, the intelligence, the party and the legislature, “and become a dictator of the country.”
Former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) also voiced her concern, saying that these are signs of Ma’s intention to gain more control over politics and move Taiwan closer to unification with China via the KMT-CCP exchange platform.
“Once Ma becomes the [KMT] chairman, he will have the power to nominate candidates for the year-end local government head elections, as well as for the next legislative election,” Lu said. “With nomination power, all KMT politicians who seek to run in elections — including those who would often disagree with Ma — will have to listen to him.”
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY FLORA WANG, RICH CHANG AND LOA IOK-SIN
PROTECTION: The New Taipei City mayor said a pass could cover stores, but not eateries, while Ko Wen-je said vaccinated people could be exempted from some rules Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) on Saturday proposed implementing a “COVID-19 pass” regulation that would allow only vaccinated people into certain areas. New Taipei City is planning to require a “COVID-19 pass” for entry to “vulnerable spaces” to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Hou said. Non-students entering elementary schools in New Taipei City are required to show their COVID-19 vaccination cards or proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test. This is for the protection of students under the age of 12, who are not eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, city officials have said. The
‘GOOD FRIEND’: The Slovenian prime minister said he had visited Taiwan four or five times, and that Taiwanese should have the right to determine their future The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed Slovenia’s plan to establish a representative office in Taiwan, after Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa revealed the plan in an interview with Indian TV station Doordarshan on Monday. Taiwan is a democratic country that respects international democratic standards and international laws, the Slovenian prime minister said in the interview. Slovenia and Taiwan are working on “exchanging representatives,” he said. “Of course, this will not be on the level of embassies. It will be on the same level as many of the EU member countries.” “When I spoke with our businessmen who are trading with Taiwan, they
LAWMAKERS RALLY: Beijing’s unlegislated actions breach international and WTO trade rules, and affect the basic principles of the EU single market, the letter said A group of 41 EU lawmakers on Tuesday condemned China for its political and economic coercion of Lithuania, and called on leaders of the bloc to demonstrate solidarity with Vilnius. The letter was initiated by Slovakian Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Miriam Lexmann, who is cochair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. “We, the undersigned members of the European Parliament, resolutely condemn political and economic coercion of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) against Lithuania,” the letter said. The letter addressed European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and
BRIBES FOR VOTES: A probe found that funding for the scheme came from Huang Daonian, director of the Economic Bureau at Changsha City’s Taiwan Affairs Office Five Taiwanese businesspeople working in China were yesterday found guilty of taking money from Chinese authorities to buy votes for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) in the 2020 presidential election. The Taipei District Court sentenced Association of Taiwan Investment Enterprises (台灣同胞投資企業協會) Changsha City Branch chairman Lin Huai (林懷) to three years and 10 months in jail, with deprivation of his civil rights for four years. The other four convicted in the case, who all received 20-month prison terms, were China New Family Association (中華兩岸新家庭協會) chairwoman Chiang Ming-sia (蔣明霞), Hunan Shaoyang City Association in Taiwan (湖南邵陽旅台同鄉會) director Chang Kuo-chun (張國君),
RSS