The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) on Wednesday decided to include all potential presidential candidates, including Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), in its primary to select the party’s candidate for next year’s presidential election.
During the weekly KMT Central Standing Committee meeting, the party adopted a resolution to put in place special guidelines for the nomination of its candidate, so that all potential hopefuls could be included in the primary.
The committee also decided that the nomination schedule would be announced next month and that the primary would not begin until after June, the KMT said.
Photo: Ke Yu-hao, Taipei Times
Several committee members tendered a motion to structure the primary solely on opinion polls rather than a 70-30 weighting of public opinion polls and member votes — the method the party in February said it would adopt.
KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) did not announce a decision on the motion at the meeting.
KMT Organizational Development Committee director Lee Che-hua (李哲華) said that the motion would be dealt with after all of the party’s presidential aspirants have been consulted.
The resolution came one day after Han told reporters: “At this time, I cannot join the primary under the existing system.”
Han said that while he did not want to enter the KMT primary, he felt the need to take responsibility for the development and defense of Taiwan.
The statement was interpreted in some quarters to be an indication of Han’s interest in running for president, even though he was hesitant to take part in the primary in case he was seen as abandoning Kaohsiung too soon after his election in November last year.
Han’s reluctance to enter the primary prompted his supporters to urge the party to change its nomination guidelines.
At the meeting, Wu issued an instruction that all presidential hopefuls would be included in the primary, whether they actually sign up, KMT spokesman Ouyang Lung (歐陽龍) said.
This is expected to also benefit Hon Hai Precision Industry chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘), who has said that he intends to seek the KMT’s nomination.
Despite having long been a KMT member, the tycoon has not renewed his membership for several years, leading his party rights to be restricted.
Under current party regulations, members are not qualified to take part in a primary unless they have held full membership for at least four months.
Other KMT hopefuls are former New Taipei City mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫), KMT Legislator Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) and former Taipei County commissioner Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋).
Media polls show that Han has more public support than Gou.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiao-kuang
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS