The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is to form a task force to review its defeats in Saturday’s presidential and legislative elections, and propose plans to reform the party, KMT deputy spokesman Huang Hsin-hua (黃心華) said yesterday.
Top party officials met for the first time since the elections, and the party’s “major setbacks” were discussed and an agreement reached to establish a task force to thoroughly review the party’s performance and propose reform plans, Huang said.
They also discussed the resignation of KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and executive-level members, he said, adding: “Once the Central Standing Committee approves of it, a chairperson by-election will be held immediately.”
Photo: Lai Hsiao-tung, Taipei
To ensure the operation of the party during the transitional period, all management-level members have been urged to continue carrying out their duties, he said.
Among those at the meeting were KMT Vice Chairman Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權), Organizational Development Committee director Tu Chien-teh (杜建德), Culture and Communications Committee director-general Cheng Mei-hua (程美華), Administration and Management Committee director Chiu Da-chan (邱大展), Disciplinary Committee director Wei Ping-cheng (魏平政) and other executive-level members.
Wu on Saturday night said that he and all executive-level members involved in the elections would tender their resignation to the Central Standing Committee tomorrow to take responsibility for the defeats.
The committee is expected to approve Wu’s resignation, but no one has yet publicly committed to running to succeed him.
KMT Tainan chapter head Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) had previously said that he would run for chairmanship after the elections, but he appears to be rethinking the move.
Party members have floated the names of Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), and KMT legislators Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and Johnny Chiang (江啟臣).
Asked by reporters in Kaohsiung yesterday if he was interested, Han said he “has absolutely no plan” to run for chairman.
In an interview with China Review News Agency published yesterday, Johnny Chiang denied considering the idea, saying his priority is to stabilize things on the legislative front for the KMT.
Hou and Chiang Wan-an were vague when pressed on Sunday.
As New Taipei City mayor, he is preoccupied with his job of running the city, Hou said, adding yesterday that KMT members should calm down and ponder the party’s issues and its next steps.
Chiang Wan-an said that the KMT must thoroughly review its losses and that its problems “would not be solved in a short time.”
Additional reporting by Tsai Wen-chu and CNA
WHEELING AND DEALING? Hou You-yi, Ko Wen-je, Eric Chu and Ma Ying-jeou are under investigation for allegedly offering bribes for the other side to drop out of the race Taipei prosecutors have started an investigation into allegations that four top politicians involved in attempts to form a “blue-white” presidential ticket have contravened election regulations. Listed as defendants are Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the KMT and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). The case stemmed from judicial complaints filed last month with the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office alleging that the KMT (blue) and the TPP (white) had engaged in bribery by offering money or other enticements
ELIGIBLE FOR JANUARY: All presidential candidates and their running mates meet the requirements to run for office, and none hold dual citizenship, the CEC said Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator and vice presidential candidate Cynthia Wu (吳欣盈) is working with the Central Election Commission (CEC) to resolve issues with her financial disclosure statement, a spokesman for the candidate said yesterday, after the commission published the statements of all three presidential candidates and their running mates, while confirming their eligibility to run in the Jan. 13 election. Wu’s office spokesman, Chen Yu-cheng (陳宥丞), said the candidate encountered unforeseen difficulties disclosing her husband’s finances due to being suddenly thrust into the campaign. She is also the first vice presidential nominee to have a foreign spouse, complicating the reporting of
GOOD NEWS: Although open civic spaces are shrinking in Asia-Pacific countries and territories, Taiwan’s openness is a positive sign, an expert said Taiwan remains the only country in Asia with an “open” civic space for the fifth consecutive year, the Civicus Monitor said in a report released yesterday. The People Power Under Attack 2023 report named Taiwan as one of only 37 open countries or territories out of 198 globally, and the only one in Asia. Compiled by Civicus — a global alliance of civil society organizations dedicated to bolstering civil action — the ranking compiled annually since 2017 measures the state of freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression around the world. Researchers assign each country or territory one of five rankings describing the
NOT JUST CHIPS: Although semiconductor processes are on the list, it also includes military technology and post-quantum cryptography to combat emerging cyberthreats The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) yesterday released a list of 22 technologies it considers crucial to the nation’s security and competitiveness, including the 14-nanometer semiconductor process and advanced chip packaging. For the first time, the council made a list of core technologies with an aim of preventing secret information about those technologies being leaked to foreign countries, which could put the nation’s security and the competitiveness of local industries at risk. For years, local semiconductor companies have faced challenges from talent poaching and theft of corporate secrets by Chinese competitors, who are seeking to rapidly advance their technology capabilities through
RSS