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KMT will retain personnel in key posts before poll

Chinese Nationalist Party chairman-elect and Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou, second right, does the thumbs-up sign and shouts ``Kinmen first'' before beginning a bicycle tour as part of a visit to the outlying island yesterday. PHOTO: WU CHENG-TING, TAIPEI TIMES

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman-elect Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said yesterday that there will be no major party personnel reshuffle before the Dec. 3 "three-in-one" elections.

Ma, who is the mayor of Taipei and is set to assume the KMT chairmanship on Aug. 19, made the remarks while meeting KMT rank-and-file members on the outlying island of Kinmen.

During the meeting, several party members urged Ma to push for sweeping party reforms after taking over, including direct elections of local chapter heads by rank-and-file members.

Saying that his determination to launch wide-ranging party reforms was beyond question, Ma said timing was very important to the fate of a reform program.

For instance, he said, the KMT's decision-making Central Standing Committee already passed a resolution in March this year requiring direct elections for local chapter heads.

"But less than four months are left before the Dec. 3 simultaneous elections for city mayors/county magistrates, city/county councilors and township chiefs. If I push for a major intraparty reshuffle immediately after assuming the chairmanship, it could run against the conventional wisdom of `refraining from changing the guard before a battle,'" Ma said.

As 72 percent of KMT members have voiced support for sweeping intraparty reforms, Ma said he has always kept in mind this resounding call for a revamp of the party.

In the short term, Ma said, the party will only undergo minor personnel changes to avoid affecting the party's chances of winning in the year-end "three-in-one" elections. In the long run, Ma said, he will see to it that complementary measures are mapped out to ensure that directly elected local chapter heads live up to party and public expectations.

Noting that his ultimate goal in participating in the KMT chairmanship election was to help the party regain the presidency in 2008, Ma said he will make every possible effort to realize that goal after he assumes office.

He also revealed certain key points to be addressed in his inaugural speech, including reaffirming the KMT's opposition to pursuing Taiwan's independence as well as China's "one country, two systems" unification formula, as well as the party's desire to improve cross-strait relations under the principle of "one China, separate definitions."

In his inaugural speech, Ma said, he will call for the establishment of a military confidence-building mechanism and a platform for boosting cross-strait trade and economic exchanges.

Ma also said outgoing KMT Chairman Lien Chan's (連戰) major policy initiatives will be incorporated into his blueprint for the KMT's future policy and work agenda.
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