Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) yesterday visited Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) in his parents’ Hsinchu home and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wang Jyn-pyng (王金平) at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei to extend Mid-Autumn Festival greetings.
The publicized visits were widely interpreted as indicative of Gou’s intention to soon launch an independent presidential bid with support from Ko and Wang.
On the holiday tomorrow, the Central Election Commission is to begin accepting registrations for independent candidates in next year’s presidential election.
Photo: CNA
On Tuesday, the deputy chief executive of Gou’s Yonglin Foundation, Evelyn Tsai (蔡沁瑜); Taipei City Government adviser Tsai Pi-ju (蔡壁如); and Wang’s secretary, Lynette Lin (林思慧), visited the commission to inquire about registration rules.
Gou took mooncakes to Ko and his parents at their home after going to the Hsinchu City God Temple with the mayor, where Ko told reporters that he had invited Gou to join him.
If Gou runs for president, Tsai Pi-ju is to provide assistance, Ko said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Asked if he would also help Gou, the mayor said it depends on the way things unfold, but added that he would do his best.
Ko’s mother, Ho Jui-ying (何瑞英), told reporters that she supports Gou’s presidential bid.
“My son said he is collaborating with Gou. As his mother, how can I not support that?” she said, adding that Gou would be a good president and her son should continue serving as mayor.
Gou then returned to Taipei to visit Wang at his office in the legislature.
In their nearly hour-long meeting, the two exchanged views on politics and economic developments.
The nation is caught in a political feud between its two major parties, which have prioritized political issues over economic development, Gou said in the meeting.
He and Wang share the belief that “the interests of Taiwan’s 23 million people are more important than any party’s interests or will,” he said, as Wang nodded.
Under President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration, the economy and cross-strait relations have suffered, Wang said, adding that the nation needs a new leader who can ensure its security and cross-strait stability, and improve the economy.
Gou presented mooncakes, while Wang gave him a baseball cap from Changhua County’s Puyan Shunze Temple (埔鹽順澤宮), made famous by Norwegian triathlete Gustav Iden, who on Friday last week wore one as he won the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in France.
Wang said he would not serve as Gou’s vice president, and would decide his next move depending on how things develop.
Gou is still considering whether to run and would make a decision soon, Wang added.
Gou in July lost the KMT presidential primary to Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) by 17.1 percentage points.
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