People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) yesterday said he would not rule out the possibility of a PFP-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) alliance, while KMT presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) brushed off the talk.
Soong, responding to a question about pan-blue cooperation in Taoyuan, said that both the pan-blue camp and the nation require a consensus.
If any pan-blue camp cooperation results in a clear-cut divide between the pan-blues and the pan-greens, then that would not be good for the nation, he said.
“The door is always open” for those who wish to discuss cooperation, Soong said, adding that he is willing to talk with the KMT, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) or any other party if they propose good policies.
Pressed by reporters on whether he would pair up with Hung, Soong said he would not rule out the possibility, but emphasized that cooperation between parties would not be “to give another party a thrashing, but to find ways out for Taiwan.”
According to a TVBS opinion poll released on Monday, Hung has gained 6 percentage points compared with a previous poll conducted early last month, securing 23 percent of the vote, while Soong’s support has dwindled from 20 percent to 16 percent among pan-blue voters.
DPP presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) garnered 40 percent support in the poll, securing a small increase of 2 percentage points.
Asked whether she would consider teaming up with Soong, either in the form of a Soong-Hung or Hung-Soong presidential ticket, Hung said that she does not think people “would be happy to hear talk about a partnership, as what they would like to see are good policies.”
“Policies that benefit the nation and the public win people’s hearts, and that is way more important than hearsay about a partnership,” she said.
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