By Chris Wang / Staff Reporter, in HUALIEN CITY
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday in Hualien County that she was pleased with the operation and progress of her presidential campaign
Tsai made the remark in response to criticism from Hung Chih-kun (洪智坤), a member of the DPP’s Central Executive Committee, who said Tsai’s campaign was “out of sync” and has crowded out several party heavyweights.
“He definitely has to review his observations, because the team is now in control and the campaign is running smoothly,” Tsai said in Yuli Township (玉里) on the second day of her visit to eastern Taiwan.
Hung wrote on his Facebook page that former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and former Presidential Office secretary-general Chiou I-jen (邱義仁) both wanted to contribute to the campaign, but they had been excluded from the team by a pair of Tsai’s senior aides.
He also criticized the aides, who are believed to be campaign manager Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁) and senior aide Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀), for their poor performance in crisis management and agenda setting.
Tsai said Hung’s observation was not correct, adding that she appreciated the efforts and innovative skills of her team, citing the current “piggy bank” fundraising drive as an example, referring to the recent craze among supporters to use piggy bank donation boxes for her campaign.
Hung also voiced his displeasure in July over the DPP’s 34-member legislators-at-large list for the legislative elections in January, saying that the list symbolized “a compromise to the party’s factionalism.”