Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) yesterday struck a different tone on the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential primary, saying that he would respect any arrangements made by KMT headquarters or the Central Standing Committee, including pitting him against other aspirants in a public opinion poll.
“Given the current situation, I cannot be included in opinion polls on the presidential election,” Han said. “As Kaohsiung mayor, I shoulder the expectations of Kaohsiung residents.”
“If party headquarters or the Central Standing Committee needs Han Kuo-yu in some way to make all kinds of arrangements, including opinion polls, I will respect” their decision, he said.
Photo: CNA
He made the remarks following a closed-door meeting with KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) at party headquarters in Taipei.
He also thanked Wu, first for nominating him as KMT Kaohsiung chapter chairman and then the Kaohsiung mayoral candidate in last year’s local elections.
Han said that he, Wu, and KMT vice chairmen Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) and Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) agreed at the meeting that the party must concentrate all their strength and unite ahead of next year’s presidential election, thereby protecting the Republic of China.
Responding to reporters’ questions on whether he would be the KMT’s candidate if he emerged as the front-runner in polls, Han only said: “What I just said was something I have never said before.”
Asked whether he and Wu talked about other KMT members who have expressed an interest in joining the KMT primary or how the primary would be conducted, Han said the model for yesterday’s meeting would be followed by other potential candidates.
He denied that his relationship with Wu had soured, saying that he is on friendly terms with his “former boss,” with whom he had a cordial meeting.
Asked whether he would make any clearer move to make known his desire to join the KMT primary, he said that with the party’s nomination rules still in limbo, he could only respect KMT headquarters’ decisions.
KMT Organizational Development Committee director Lee Che-hua (李哲華) said that the party is inclining toward drafting primary rules that the race be solely based on opinion polls.
Wu is to meet separately in the coming days with former New Taipei City mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫), KMT Legislator Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) and former Taipei County commissioner Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋), all of whom have publicly stated their intention to take part in the primary, to seek their opinions on the primary rules, Lee said.
The primary rules and schedule could be passed by the Central Standing Committee by the middle of this month, while the KMT’s presidential candidate could be selected in early July and approved during the KMT National Congress on July 28, he added.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiao-kuang
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from