Three top pan-blue officials yesterday announced a 10-day leave of absence from their posts in order to campaign for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Lien Chan (連戰).
Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強), Taoyuan County Commissioner Chu Li-lun (朱立倫) and Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) all said they were ready to focus 100 percent on getting the pan-blues back into the Presidential Office.
Hu, whose campaign efforts have been criticized by KMT colleagues, said that he was ready to pull his weight in the presidential campaign.
"No matter what the presidential election polls say, I will not lower my vigilance [about the election] as the presidential campaign comes to the final sprint," Hu said.
Hu accompanied Lien in Taichung yesterday afternoon to visit the former Judicial Yuan president Lin Yang-kang (林洋港) and canvas for votes. The pair also had a talk with manufacturers in the Taichung Industrial Park.
Hu invited Lin to propose a referendum on the merger of Taichung City and Taichung County, which aims to turn the area into one directly administered by the Cabinet in the same manner as Taipei and Kaohsiung.
In a radio show yesterday, Hu announced that he would not vote in the referendum on March 20, but added that he had not yet decided whether to ask Taichung residents to do the same.
Chu also announced his leave of absence, saying he would fight for Lien "with all my might."
Ma, as the national campaign manager of the pan-blue camp, said he was ready to assist the campaign.
Ma said he would assume command of an emergency panel found especially for the presidential election day in Taipei City Hall on March 20. The panel will respond to any incidents that take place in Taipei during the election.
Taipei Deputy Mayor Ou Chin-der (歐晉德) will oversee the city's Bureau of Police and another deputy mayor, Pai Hsiou-hsiung (白秀雄), will take over the Taipei Election Commission (TEC), Ma said.
"I call on Taipei citizens to stay calm and rational on March 20 so that the task of counting and announcing ballots can be completed without any accidents," Ma said.
Director of the Bureau of Police Wang Cho-chun (王卓鈞) said that 17 places in the city were listed as potential flashpoints and that the police would reinforce their guard in these areas on March 20. Wang said that the areas included the Presidential Office, the DPP, KMT and the People First Party (PFP) headquarters and the candidates' residences.
"However, until now, no intelligence shows that anyone is planning a riot on that day," said Wang, adding that police would enhance security at all voting booths.
Asked about his campaign strategy, Ma said that he would employ "flexible and mobile tactics" to boost Lien's election because many events were not planned.
Ma added that he would stay in Taipei City for the next 10 days but declined to comment on how many votes the pan-blues would win in Taipei.
Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (
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