Accompanied by two former high-ranking government officials, independent presidential candidate James Soong (
"I have a new vision for restoring Taiwan's vital force, in which politics will be clean and bright, and where society is equal and ethnic groups are united," Soong said.
At the opening ceremony for the headquarters, held yesterday at Taipei's Ta-an Park, Soong also announced his campaign personnel structure, which includes both former Legislative Yuan speaker Liu Sung-fan (
Liu is to serve as the "team captain" of the so-called "New Taiwanese Service Team," while Liao is to take up the post of chairman of Soong's campaign headquarters.
"From my observations as Legislative Yuan speaker over the past decade, Soong's belief in non-partisan politics, intended to put national interests above party affairs, is consistent with my own ideas," Liu said.
While Liu backed Soong's campaign theme, Liao took advantage of his tenure as justice minister to promote what he termed "Soong's integrity," despite his tarnished image resulting from a mushrooming financial scandal.
"If voters choose a president who has deep connections with `black-gold' politics and lacks the determination to carry out reforms, then Taiwan's development will regress," Liao said, in an apparent reference to the KMT partnership of Lien Chan (
Meanwhile, top KMT officials announced they would boost party discipline by launching another purge of pro-Soong supporters.
"The KMT has certain procedures to follow. When the time is right, we will give [pro-Soong elements] the necessary punishment," said KMT secretary-general Huang Kun-hui (
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