President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who also serves as Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman, yesterday took to the stage to stump for the party’s Taipei mayoral candidate, Sean Lien (連勝文), in a display of close interaction that seemed aimed at dispelling rumors of possible antagonistic relations between them.
The Lien family has spoken out against the Ma administration in recent years, most notably in Lien’s comments last year that, with the exception of a politically oriented minority, the majority of Taiwanese could not care less about who will run for Taipei mayor this year and that whoever is elected amid the sluggish domestic economy “could be, at the very most, the master of a beggar clan.”
Lien’s father, former vice president Lien Chan (連戰), is also friends with Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), who has also been at odds with Ma.
Photo: CNA
Ma yesterday handed Sean Lien the party flag at a campaign event held in Taipei as he asked, in Mandarin, Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese) and Hakka, for Taipei residents to support Lien.
Ma said that victory for the KMT relied on the performance of both the central government and the Taipei City Government.
Over the past six months, Taiwan’s economic growth has risen to nearly 2.98 percent and the unemployment rate has gone down to 3.85 percent from a high of 6.13 percent during the global recession of 2008, Ma said, adding that he hopes Sean Lien continues the party’s tradition and political achievements in the city.
Sean Lien said he was committed to trying to win the election.
Commenting on his decision to pursue politics, Sean Lien said he has often asked himself the question of why he wanted to become involved in politics, and he always arrives at the same conclusion: He wants to serve the public.
Sean Lien said because he has received so much from society, he wishes to reciprocate and become a spokesperson for the public.
Pointing to his jersey, Sean Lien said it was the very same one he wore on the night he was shot four years ago.
On Nov. 26, 2010, while stumping for the KMT’s New Taipei City councilor candidate, Chen Hung-yuan (陳鴻源), Sean Lien was shot in the face by Cheng-wei (林正偉), who claimed he had mistaken Sean Lien for Chen. The bullet entered the left side of his face and exited near his right temple.
He was rushed to National Taiwan University Hospital, where he underwent surgery for more than three-and-a-half hours.
Commenting on how his platform differs from that of his rival, independent candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), Sean Lien said Ko knew how to run an election, since shouting policy slogans were easier than implementing them.
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