Pro-independence heavyweight Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏) yesterday announced he is launching the “Our Generation Alliance,” a new political action group made up of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative candidates.
The group provides an alternative to the growing “One Side, One Country Alliance” set up by former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) last year.
Four legislative candidates have already announced their addition to the ranks of Our Generation Alliance, mostly nominees facing races in tough-to-win electoral districts including Ho Po-wen (何博文) and Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政).
Photo: Wang Min-wei, Taipei Times
Ho is running against KMT Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇), while Lo, a political science professor, is running in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Banciao (板橋) constituency. Lo is also a member of the One Side, One Country Alliance.
DPP Taipei City Councilor Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏), another member, is also seeking the DPP’s nomination to run in Taipei City’s Zhongshan-Songshan (中山-松山) electoral district, where she will face Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾).
The fourth member, DPP Legislator Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國), is vying for re-election in Yunlin County’s Siluo-Douliu (西螺-斗六) electoral district after he won a by-election in 2009.
“I personally guarantee that these [four candidates] represent [Taiwan’s] hopes,” said Koo, a former senior presidential advisor who also heads the Taiwan Brain Trust. “The think tank endorses all four of these people.”
Koo added he expected more candidates to also join the platform for “societal fairness, generational fairness, transitional fairness and international fairness.”
The so-called alliances are a growing force in the DPP, which has gradually seen the influence of its factions decline in the past few years. Alliance members generally stump for each other in political events and pool some resources together.
It is part of a trend toward having cadres of lawmakers connected to more heavyweight politicians. Former premiers Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) each have influence over a group of city councilors and lawmakers.
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