Lien Chan pledges support for joint candidate

KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) yesterday promised to stump for Wang Chien-shien, the KMT and New Party's joint candidate for Taipei County commissioner. Chan said Wang can expect his full support in the upcoming campaign.

And in a move to show the PFP's support for Wang's candidacy, PFP Vice Chairman Chang Chao-hsiung (張昭雄) said he would do the same for Wang and urged the PFP's supporters to vote for the joint candidate.

"Since this is bona fide cooperation between political parties, the KMT will fully support you [Wang] to win the position," Lien said during a meeting with Wang.

On Thursday, the KMT and New Party decided to jointly support the candidacy of Wang, a New Party co-founder and former minister of finance, after he beat the KMT's nominee Lin Jih-jia (林志嘉) in opinion polls.

The development came two weeks after PFP Deputy Secretary-general Chin Chin-sheng (秦金生), the party's nominee for Taipei County commissioner, quit the race.

Wang yesterday visited both the KMT and PFP leadership to extend invitations to Lin and Chin to be his running mates in an effort to boost opposition alliance cooperation.

The PFP's absence from the polling had sparked public doubt as to whether the party was supportive of the cooperation plan and Wang's candidacy.

"This partnership can prove that cooperation within the opposition alliance is for real," Wang said.

Wang added both Lin and Chin are familiar with Taipei County and will offer him great assistance in administering the county after he is elected.

"The three of us will definitely do a good job in Taipei County. The purpose of the alliance is not just to win the election, but to ensure excellent performance after getting elected," Wang said.

Lin on Thursday said that he would not seek other public office and would quit politics, temporarily or for good.

Chin, meanwhile, is abroad and could not be reached for comment. It is believed that the possibility of him accepting the running-mate offer is remote.

PFP Vice Chairman Chang Chao-hsiung (張昭雄) said Wang's offer was most welcome.

But Chang said the decision on whether to accept the offer is up to Chin himself, and that party chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) would need to approve the plan.

Chang said he himself would be very happy to stump for Wang in the run-up to the election, and urged PFP supporters to throw their support behind the candidate.

"Now that the KMT has decided not to send its own candidate and the PFP has also quit the race, Wang is the only candidate [for the opposition alliance]. There is no doubt about it," Chang said.

On the question of whether Soong will campaign for Wang, Chang said he could not answer the question on his behalf. Soong has not yet returned from an overseas trip.

Following the successful example of cooperation in Taipei County, PFP lawmakers yesterday urged the KMT to accept a PFP proposal to conduct opinion polls in other localities to select candidates to represent the opposition alliance in the county commissioner and city mayoral elections.

According to Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋), convener of the PFP's legislative caucus, localities awaiting integration include Kaohsiung, Changhua, Hualien, Taitung, Lienchiang, Kinmen, Miaoli, Nantou and Taoyuan counties, as well as Keelung City.

"We should avoid a mutually destructive fight which will lead the opposition alliance to failure," Chou said.