Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative caucus convener William Tseng (曾銘宗) yesterday urged the party to name New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) as its presidential nominee, saying Hou has already made his intention to run “100 percent” clear.
Tseng made the remarks in response to a question about a speech Hou gave at National Chiayi Senior High School on Saturday, when he said: “Protect the Republic of China [and] move bravely forward. If not me, then who?”
The latter part of the phrase, a traditional idiom, was interpreted by some as a declaration of Hou’s intention to run for president.
Photo: Liu Hsin-te, Taipei Times
However, Hou said in an interview after the event that he meant the words in a more general sense and was urging his audience to “use the spirit of ‘If not me, then who?’” to protect Taiwan.
Tseng said that while the KMT was a “party of systems,” he nevertheless hopes it would name Hou as its presidential nominee.
The main opposition KMT and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) select their presidential candidates internally.
The DPP on Wednesday formally nominated Vice President William Lai (賴清德) as its candidate in next year’s presidential election.
Hou remains the favorite for the KMT’s nomination, although Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) has also been tipped as a possible choice.
Speaking alongside Tseng yesterday, KMT legislative caucus secretary-general Hsieh Yi-fong said that the “vast majority” of KMT lawmakers at a meeting earlier in the day said they viewed Hou as the party’s best choice.
Although a “small minority” of legislators do not support Hou, they expressed a willingness to back him if he is nominated, Hsieh said, adding that caucus members believe a nominee needs to be selected by next month.
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