Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Kaohsiung representative Ao Po-sheng (敖博勝) yesterday accused the party of practicing what he called “blue terror” and urged Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) to withdraw as the party’s presidential candidate.
Since KMT headquarters officially nominated Han as its presidential candidate last month, it has created a rift in the party, Ao told a news conference, as he announced that he was withdrawing as a party member.
The KMT has become a “one man’s say” party, but it has not blocked out the noise that is opposed to Han’s nomination, he added.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Ao said he supports Hon Hai Precision Industry founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) and hopes Gou could replace Han as the party’s candidate in the Jan. 11 presidential election, “because Gou is the only candidate who can save the party.”
“Han’s critics within the KMT have spoken words of truth, but they have been expelled for their honest criticism,” Ao said. “Meanwhile, someone who is full of lies gets to run for president. Is there still a future for a KMT like this?”
Two recent public opinion polls showed that 37 and 43 percent of respondents hope that the KMT would replace Han as its presidential candidate, while several other surveys suggest a strong distrust and dislike for Han among KMT supporters, he said.
Their distrust of Han surpasses that for the Democratic Progressive Party in some cases, he added.
If the KMT continues to turn a blind eye to this and is determined to defend Han, it would result in “the whole party saving one person who will ruin the whole party,” he said.
Citing the KMT’s 2016 presidential election campaign, Ao said there had been many critics of the party’s original candidate, former KMT chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), whose nomination was later rescinded.
KMT headquarters did not expel any Central Standing Committee or party members then, but its current “one man’s say” approach is irrational and has alienated swing voters, Ao said.
During a KMT Central Advisory Committee meeting last month, committee member Chao Shou-po (趙守博) urged Han to quit drinking, while former Kaohsiung County commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興), who served six months as convener for Han’s panel on cross-strait affairs, on Tuesday told reporters that Han “has a mistress, binge drinks and goes to nightclubs.”
There has been speculation that Han had understated the political donations he received for his mayoral election campaign, and more doubts are bound to arise, Ao said.
If KMT headquarters moves to expel anyone who doubts Han, it would be just like “the emperor’s new clothes,” he added.
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