The Presidential Office yesterday denied that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wanted to return to the chairmanship of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) after Saturday’s elections.
A story in the latest issue of Chinese-language Next Magazine, published yesterday, said that Ma wanted to return to the KMT’s top post and would seek the seat in accordance with the party’s regulations.
The magazine said that since KMT Chairman and presidential candidate Eric Chu (朱立倫) would have to resign if the KMT loses at the polls, Ma who is “chairman ex officio” according to the KMT’s constitution, could return to the position as Chu was elected to the job in January last year only to fill the rest of Ma’s term after he resigned as chairman on Dec. 3, 2014, to take responsibility for the party’s poor showing in the nine-in-one elections on Nov. 29.
Presidential Office spokesperson Charles Chen (陳以信) said Ma has no intention of returning to the KMT chairmanship and there is no regulation in the party’s constitution concerning such a return.
“That is not a possibility,” Chen said.
People should stop circulating such rumors as the president had already made it clear during a visit to Nantou County on Nov. 24 last year that such speculation was unfounded, he said.
The magazine cited a source in the pan-blue camp as saying that Ma that has sought support from Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), via Hon Hai Precision Industry Co chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘), for a return to the chairmanship.
According to the Next story, Gou said that National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Chairman Yu Zhengsheng (俞正聲) has voiced his support for Ma’s return as KMT chairman because Beijing does not wish to see the KMT crumble after the elections.
The story said that Beijing has asked former vice president and former KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰) to feel out Wang’s attitude over the matter, but has not received an answer.
Chen was not the only one to dismiss the magazine story, Hon Hai did as well.
And when Wang was asked by reporters whether he would support Ma’s re-election, he said: “[Let’s] talk about it later.”
Chu’s campaign manager, former Taichung mayor Jason Hu (胡自強), said the possibility of Ma’s return “is extremely slim,” adding that Ma resigned as chairman due to the [2014] election rout so “I think it would be difficult for him to come back.”
Additional reporting by CNA
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by