Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) rejected a report that president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) would quit as party chairperson and that Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) would likely take over the position.
A report published on Saturday by online news portal Storm Media said that Tsai would quit as DPP chairperson to focus on her new job as president and that Chen might become the party’s next leader.
The report’s source might be a politically motivated person from the party, Tuan wrote on Facebook yesterday, adding that he does not think Chen would be interested in taking over the party’s leadership.
Photo: Chang Chung-i, Taipei Times
“The rumor that Tsai would not serve both as DPP chairperson [and as president], and that Chen would become the next chairperson has suddenly become a point of focus in the media,” Tuan wrote. “Of course someone is intentionally spreading the rumor.”
Tuan said the motivation behind spreading such a rumor could be trying to prevent Tsai from quitting and Chen from taking over, adding that the person spreading the rumor is either someone who is interested in the party leadership, or would prefer that Tsai remain as chairperson so that there would not be a redistribution of power within the party.
Although Tuan did not say who he thought spread the rumor, he said: “If you look at the name of the reporter who wrote the story and trace the reporter’s personal connections, you would have an 80 to 90 percent chance of figuring out who the [source] is.”
However, whoever spread the rumor is worrying too much, Tuan said, adding that he does not believe Chen is interested in running for leadership.
“If Chen is interested, she would not have waited until now,” Tuan said. “Tsai should remain as chairperson. There is no need to vacate the position and trigger infighting within the party.”
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