Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Kaohsiung representative Ao Po-sheng (敖博勝) yesterday accused the party of practicing what he called “blue terror” and urged Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) to withdraw as the party’s presidential candidate.
Since KMT headquarters officially nominated Han as its presidential candidate last month, it has created a rift in the party, Ao told a news conference, as he announced that he was withdrawing as a party member.
The KMT has become a “one man’s say” party, but it has not blocked out the noise that is opposed to Han’s nomination, he added.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Ao said he supports Hon Hai Precision Industry founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) and hopes Gou could replace Han as the party’s candidate in the Jan. 11 presidential election, “because Gou is the only candidate who can save the party.”
“Han’s critics within the KMT have spoken words of truth, but they have been expelled for their honest criticism,” Ao said. “Meanwhile, someone who is full of lies gets to run for president. Is there still a future for a KMT like this?”
Two recent public opinion polls showed that 37 and 43 percent of respondents hope that the KMT would replace Han as its presidential candidate, while several other surveys suggest a strong distrust and dislike for Han among KMT supporters, he said.
Their distrust of Han surpasses that for the Democratic Progressive Party in some cases, he added.
If the KMT continues to turn a blind eye to this and is determined to defend Han, it would result in “the whole party saving one person who will ruin the whole party,” he said.
Citing the KMT’s 2016 presidential election campaign, Ao said there had been many critics of the party’s original candidate, former KMT chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), whose nomination was later rescinded.
KMT headquarters did not expel any Central Standing Committee or party members then, but its current “one man’s say” approach is irrational and has alienated swing voters, Ao said.
During a KMT Central Advisory Committee meeting last month, committee member Chao Shou-po (趙守博) urged Han to quit drinking, while former Kaohsiung County commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興), who served six months as convener for Han’s panel on cross-strait affairs, on Tuesday told reporters that Han “has a mistress, binge drinks and goes to nightclubs.”
There has been speculation that Han had understated the political donations he received for his mayoral election campaign, and more doubts are bound to arise, Ao said.
If KMT headquarters moves to expel anyone who doubts Han, it would be just like “the emperor’s new clothes,” he added.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
An inauguration ceremony was held yesterday for the Danjiang Bridge, the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge, ahead of its official opening to traffic on Tuesday, marking a major milestone after nearly three decades of planning and construction. At the ceremony in New Taipei City attended by President William Lai (賴清德), Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the bridge was hailed as both an engineering landmark and a long-awaited regional transport link connecting Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里)
RSS