Thursday, March 15, 2012

DPP sets May 27 for chairperson race

GET ROLLING::Former Tainan County head Su Huan-chih has announced his bid and many believe former premier Su Tseng-chang is close to declaring his candidacy
By Chris Wang  /  Staff Reporter
Thu, Mar 15, 2012 - Page 3

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) will hold its elections for chairperson on May 27, the party said yesterday, as former Tainan County commissioner Su Huan-chih (蘇煥智) took the lead by formally announcing his bid for the party’s top post.

Election announcements will be released on April 2 and candidates for party chairperson and representatives can register for the elections from April 9 to 13, DPP spokesperson Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) said after the party’s weekly Central Standing Committee meeting.

DPP members will go to nationwide polls on May 27 to select the 14th DPP chairperson and party representatives, he said.

The committee, with acting chairperson Chen Chu (陳菊) presiding over the meeting for the first time, also decided to establish a 14-member task force on party reform, which many see as one of Chen’s main tasks during her interim term.

DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) will head the task force, with DPP Deputy Secretary-General Hung Yao-fu (洪耀福) serving as executive secretary. The panel will also have 10 party members, including legislators Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟), Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) and Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君), and two academics, Lin said.

Su, 55, formally announced his candidacy for chairperson at a press conference, saying he was confident of his ability to accomplish the DPP’s quest to return to power in 2016 and carry out party reform.

The former commissioner unveiled his policy of initiating a “third wave Taiwanese democratic movement,” which would focus on public care, affairs and policy to transform the party, rather than simply focusing on winning elections.

Su pledged that he would not join the 2016 presidential race, while former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) and former Examination Yuan president Yao Chia-wen (姚嘉文) voiced their support for his bid to head the DPP.

Su elaborated on his vision for the party’s much-debated China policy and his plan to change the public perception of the DPP’s weakness at handling economic issues.

He said the DPP should uphold its Resolution on Taiwan’s Future, but should also seek to engage Beijing with an open mind and flexible strategies.

On the economy, he proposed improving Taiwan’s investment environment and diversifying its investments to Southeast Asia to reduce its reliance on China, as well as developing domestic sectors by promoting green industries and a creative culture industry with Taiwanese characteristics.

Acknowledging the DPP’s disadvantage in northern Taiwan, Su proposed introducing a NT$7,000 monthly subsidy for children under six years old and a public childcare mechanism in five years, as well as a national referendum to stop the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in the north.

Su is generally viewed by most political analysts and party members as a wild card in the election, as former premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), 64, is believed to also be interested in contending for the chairmanship.

Although Su Tseng-chang has not made any announcement, he seemed to be inching closer toward a formal announcement of his bid after his meeting with former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), seen by many as his main political rival, on Tuesday and intensive visits with DPP politicians recently.

Speaking to the press after the Central Standing Committee meeting, Hsieh said he had not been preparing to run in the election, but did not rule out the possibility.

He said that “about two to three” DPP politicians are interested in joining the race and he did not believe that any of the aspirants would be talked out of running.

Hsieh declined to confirm whether former DPP legislator Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) is one of the aspirants.