KMT chairman registers for 2016 presidential poll, asks DPP to stop its boycott

 KMT chairman registers for 2016 presidential poll, asks DPP to stop its boycott

    November 25, 2016

Kuomintang chairman and presidential candidate Eric Chu called on the Democratic Progressive Party on November 25 to stop opposing the trade-in-good and trade-in-service agreements with mainland China for the sake of development of Taiwan’s economy.

He also asked the DPP to stop its negative campaign tactic of attacking his running mate Jennifer Wang over what it claimed as lacking transparency a real estate transaction deal involving Wang.

Chu made the comments as he and Wang officially registered their candidacies with the Central Election Commission on November 25 for the 2016 presidential election.

He said DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen – his presidential opponent -- has claimed cross-strait talks on trade-in-good agreement are not transparent enough, and has demanded that those talks carried on only after the passage of the Cross-strait Agreement Supervisory Act.

But the DPP is to blame for repeatedly stalling the legislation of the act, thus making conclusion and implementation of the trade-in-good as well as trade-in-service agreements with the mainland impossible, Chu said.

He urged the DPP to stop its political interference so that all parties can work together to further develop Taiwan’s economy.

He also asked the DPP to stop smearing his running mate as such action has obstructed the election and hurt Taiwan’s democracy. He said the DPP should instead tell voters what sorts of policies it will adopt to take care of the economy, cross-strait relations, labor and the underprivileged, and debate with the KMT on policies, including how Taiwan should develop itself globally, open its economy and improve labor rights and interests.

After the registration, the KMT released its first presidential campaign video (  https://goo.gl/yMHRbj ), featuring how Taiwan has been torn apart politically over the years and the party’s goal to reduce such confrontation in order to build up mutual trust and a harmonious society. 

Lin Yi-hua, director of the KMT’s Culture and Communications Committee, said in a news conference on November 25 that Chu has long hoped to create a better future for Taiwan, and this explains why he uses “One Taiwan” as his campaign logo. She said the video shows Chu’s deep concern about Taiwan and its future as well as his hope to use the election to unify Taiwan for the sake of continuous development.

Lin said the video also tells the public that the January election will be a vote of the future direction of Taiwan, whether it will lead to opening up or seclusion.

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