Former vice president Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) yesterday pledged to establish a just, efficient and harmonious government if the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regains power again, as he announced his decision to run in the party’s chairperson election.
Wu made the announcement at a news conference in Taipei, which was attended by KMT lawmakers, local elected representatives and representatives from the military and the business community.
In a speech marked by praises for former president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) and Republic of China (ROC) founder Sun Yat-sen (孫中山), Wu said he decided to throw his hat into the ring because the party, whose cultivation allowed him to climb from the position of Taipei City councilor to vice president, is in distress.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Speaking about his 40-year political career, Wu was briefly overcome by emotion when he talked about how the publication of his opinion pieces in prominent newspapers during his sophomore year at National Taiwan University led to a meeting with Chiang in 1968.
“In the autumn of 1972, when Chiang served as premier and KMT chairman, he asked then-China Youth Corps chief secretary Lee Huan (李煥) to inform me that per Chiang’s instruction, the KMT planned to nominate a number of talented young Taiwanese for a Taipei city council by-election the next year, to allow the party to take root on the island,” Wu said.
“Lee told me that Chiang personally wrote down my name on a piece of paper,” Wu added.
Wu said for the KMT to regain control of the government, which is the primary goal of any political party, it must be an effective opposition party and take to heart the needs of the public.
Laying out four objectives for the KMT should it come to power again, Wu said all party members should make a concerted effort to establish the most efficient and friendly government possible, while working to ensure economic prosperity and equal distribution of wealth.
“Third, we should rebuild a just and harmonious society, where amicability exists between labor and capital, the younger and older generations, men and women, as well as concerned parties in the recent debates about legalizing same-sex marriage,” Wu said.
Despite calling for respect for the survival and development of “people whose sexual orientation is different from that of the majority,” the former vice president questioned the necessity to alter traditional family values that the majority has adhered to for years.
The final goal is to maintain peaceful development of cross-strait ties, Wu said, adding that it hinges on two vital foundations: the so-called “1992 consensus” and the principle of “no unification, no independence and no use of force.”
The “1992 consensus” refers to a tacit understanding between the KMT and Beijing that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means. Former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) said in 2006 that he had made up the term in 2000.
Asked whether he intends to vie for the top office in 2020, Wu was evasive, saying it was too soon to talk about candidates for the next presidential race, because only by winning next year’s local elections would the KMT stand a chance of regaining power in 2020.
He also shrugged off criticism that his candidacy in the KMT’s chairperson race on May 20 would be detrimental to party unity, as he would be running against KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and KMT Vice Chairman Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌).
“An election does not impede unity; an unfair and unjust one does,” he said.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
RSS