Outgoing Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) yesterday appointed KMT vice chairperson Huang Min-hui (黃敏惠) as the party’s interim chairperson, with Chu saying that he would never forget that the party lost the elections under his leadership.
Chu made the remarks before the KMT’s Central Standing Committee (CSC) was set to approve his resignation as party chairman at an extraordinary meeting in Taipei yesterday afternoon.
“I pledged to step down [as KMT chairman] should I be defeated in the elections... The KMT has an established tradition in which its leader takes full responsibility for the party’s loss or victory,” Chu said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Chu said he would take the largest share of responsibility for the party’s landslide defeat and planned to engage in some serious self-reflection, while apologizing to supporters and all his comrades in the party for letting them down.
“I will never forget that the KMT lost power under my governance,” Chu said.
The KMT would only be able to regain the public’s trust if it learns from its mistakes, Chu said.
The priority for the party’s next chairman would be to formulate reform proposals that could be accepted by the public and the party, Chu said.
“Despite my resignation, I will forever be the KMT’s most loyal member and will stand alongside every party comrade during reforms,” Chu said, adding that he believed Huang would take good care of the party before a chairmanship election was held.
According to the KMT charter, an election for party chairman must be held within three months of the resignation of an incumbent.
Several KMT members have reportedly expressed interest in the post, including Deputy Legislative Speaker Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), former KMT vice chairman Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌), Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), former Taichung mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) and Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平).
Following yesterday’s committee meeting, a dozen KMT members visited Wu at the Presidential Office to try and persuade him to run for the party chairmanship.
“During the KMT’s most difficult time, the party needs someone who can unite its members... Wu once served as the party’s secretary-general and has experience in elections,” CSC member Yao Chiang-lin (姚江臨) said.
Hau — who stepped down as KMT vice chairman on Saturday after failing to secure a legislative seat in Keelung — downplayed the issue yesterday when asked to comment on some party members’ calls for him to take up the post, saying he has not given the matter any thought.
In related news, Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝) also offered to resign yesterday, following the party’s poor performance in the legislative elections.
The New Power Party’s success at the ballots came as the TSU’s support crumbled, with the union losing all three of its legislator-at-large seats.
Green Party-Social Democratic Party Alliance conveners also resigned yesterday following the alliance’s disappointing showing in Saturday’s legislative elections.
She had to take responsibility for the failure of her party to win any legislative seats, Social Democratic Party convener Fan Yun (范雲) said in her resignation speech.
Green Party Taiwan co-conveners Lee Ken-cheng (李根政) and Chang Yu-ching (張育憬) also resigned.
The two parties founded an electoral alliance in hopes of pooling their votes to cross the 5 percent threshold required to be awarded at-large seats but won only 2.53 percent.
Additional reporting by Abraham Gerber and staff writer
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS