DPP to form group assisting 486 lawyers with recount

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday decided to form a recount group to assist with the recounting of presidential election ballots, which will take place between May 10 and May 20.

Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), the deputy director of the DPP's Information and Culture Department, said yesterday that the group will be focused on assisting in the vote recount process, which will be primarily conducted by 486 lawyers who will be acting on behalf of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮).

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-People First Party (PFP) alliance has recruited some 300 lawyers to assist with the vote recount.

Cheng yesterday that the establishment of the "vote recount group" is intended to help make good on Chen's promise to recount the presidential ballots comprehensively through legal means and to resolve all disputes about the election results.

The DPP said it will abide by the recount schedule and the requirements stipulated by the Taiwan High Court.

Cheng the group will be headed by Lee Ying-yuan (李應元), the party's deputy secretary general, and that party members and supporters will be mobilized to assist in the recount if necessary.

Cheng the pan-blue alliance's accusations that the DPP had committed election fraud by purchasing identification cards from people and using them to cast votes in favor of the DPP.

The KMT yesterday ran an advertisement in newspapers to encourage those who didn't vote in the election to provide their identification cards, which the pan-blue camp will then attempt to match with election registration records in order to prove fraud.

Cheng the advertisement yesterday, saying the pan-blue camp's modus operandi is simply to invent groundless accusations against the DPP.

"This reflects the usual gimmickry of the pan-blue alliance -- making accusations before they can provide evidence to verify their doubts," Cheng said.