Chen Chu gives a thumbs up to presidential support

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Kaohsiung mayoral candidate Chen Chu (陳菊) yesterday said she would welcome any campaigning by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) on her behalf.

Chen Chu issued a statement yesterday, in which she said the president and the Cabinet had long been concerned with Kaohsiung's municipal works such as the improvement the city's water quality, which is so poor that Kaohsiung citizens do not drink tap water.

"Kaohsiung's citizens are all grateful to those who have helped us. Of course we would welcome President Chen to Kaohsiung," Chen Chu said in the statement, which was issued in response to recent media speculation about whether she would welcome the president to campaign for her.

However, she said she could not say whether the president would campaign for her since he has his own concerns that she respected.

Last Wednesday DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said that the president may steal his thunder if the president campaigned for him, but he did not make clear whether he welcomed the president or not.

When responding to media questions in Taipei yesterday, Chen urged the public not to focus on who will campaign for whom.

"I care about the nation's future development and vision, including Kaohsiung's future development and sustainability. This is what the public cares about, too," he said.

Chen Chu also said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman and Taipei mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) should have clearly explained how he handled his mayoral special allowance before he campaigned for KMT candidate Huang Chun-ying (黃俊英) in Kaohsiung over the weekend.

In another statement, Chen Chu's campaign headquarters spokesman Hsiao Yu-cheng (蕭裕正) urged Huang to ask Ma to return the KMT's stolen assets to Kaohsiung citizens.

Hsiao said that since Huang upholds his integrity, he should fight for the return of the Shou-hsing Theater, which was one of the major movie theaters in Kaohsiung during the Japanese colonial era, instead of agreeing with the KMT's plan to return only NT$10 million (US$304,822) to the nation as compensation.

The theater, which measures about 3,000m2, is worth at least NT$100 million according to the headquarters' estimation. The KMT took it over after World War II.

Hsiao also questioned Huang's integrity, saying that he did not apply high moral standards to Ma concerning Ma's special allowance case and has invited Ma to campaign for him.