Young guns call for opportunity to take platform

Taking a closer look at the list of the KMT and PFP's 26-member alliance committee, it is understandable why the KMT's younger politicians are calling out for the chance to exercise their talents in the party's leadership affairs.

Co-chaired by KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and his PFP counterpart James Soong (宋楚瑜), the alliance committee -- in charge of coordinating the bid for the presidential election next March -- encompasses eight members from each party acting as co-conveners for eight sub-committees and another four selected members from each party serving as the alliance committee's members-at-large.

Excluding Lien and So-ong, it is interesting to note that while the 12 PFP mem-bers are mostly middle-aged politicians, the KMT's rep-resentatives are largely "old-timers" from the previous KMT administration.

For example, 71-year-old KMT Vice Chairman Chiang Ping-kun (江丙坤), co-convener of the finance and economy committee, is a former minister of economic affairs and former chairman of the Economic Planning and Development Council (EPDC).

64-year-old KMT Vice Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄), co-convener of the campaign affairs committee, is a former minister of the interior, while 63-year-old KMT Secretary-General Lin Fong-cheng (林豐正), in charge of the administrative committee, is a former minister of the interior and former minister of transportation and communications.

"The KMT is full of talented people, regardless of age," said 46-year-old KMT Legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖), a party stalwart whose potential has been acknowledged by political observers. "Therefore we understand that it will probably be a long time before the party's younger politicians are given their chance to exercise their ability."

However, he added, "Now that the heads of the alliance's eight committees have been decided, I personally hope that the party authority will consider more places for younger politicians as members of these committees."

Outsiders should however not interpret the desire of the party's younger generation as a sign of infighting or jockeying for position, Chen said.

"It is merely about giving room for the younger politicians to contribute and let them feel they are appreciated," Chen said.

Echoing Chen's remarks, KMT legislator Kuo Tien-tsai (郭添財) stressed that infighting is not on the minds of the party's younger generation.

"We respect the decision of the party authority [concerning the selected people on the list] and are fully behind the pairing of the Lien-Soong ticket," 41 year-old Kuo said, referring to the KMT-PFP alliance's announcement last Friday that Lien will lead the alliance's joint ticket as the presidential candidate with Soong, his former rival, as his running mate.

"Many of us just simply feel a bit puzzled [about the name list of the 26-member alliance committee,] that's all," Kuo said.

Kuo said that when the KMT lost power to the DPP in the 2000 presidential elections and Soong -- a former KMT member who quit the party to run his own campaign for the presidency against the KMT candidate Lien -- formed the PFP shortly after the 2000 elections, the PFP had tried to recruit numerous younger generation politicians from the KMT.

"Some left the KMT but many wanted to stay," Kuo said.

"It's just that it sits uneasily with those who refused to leave the KMT to now see those whom left the KMT for the PFP getting the chance to play big roles in their party and rub elbows with senior KMT leaders," Kuo said.