TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chair Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) launched his presidential campaign Saturday (May 20) by promising to restore channels of communication with China.
The former Taipei City mayor was nominated last Wednesday (May 17) by the party he founded, yet the event received little media coverage as he did not appear at a news conference. The same day, the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) named New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) as its candidate in the Jan. 13, 2024 election.
Ko, 63, appeared in a rainy Tamsui District in New Taipei City on Saturday in front of his supporters to present his ideas for the presidency, Radio Taiwan International (RTI) reported. Social harmony, peace between political parties, and between Taiwan and China were his main themes.
He promised to take a practical approach to relations with Beijing, and to reopen channels of communication with the communist country. Domestically, he said he would form a coalition government to avoid polarization, and would invite opposition leaders to a national affairs conference in order to reach a consensus on important issues.
When pressed by the media about his choice of a running mate, Ko said he did not rule out his former vice mayor, Huang Shan-shan (黃珊珊). In next January’s presidential election, Ko will face Hou as well as Vice President Lai Ching-te (賴清德), who serves as chair of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Ko said he had chosen a spot near the Tamsui River to launch his campaign Saturday as a tribute to the spirit of harmony and conciliation symbolized by Canadian Presbyterian missionary George Mackay, who arrived in Tamsui about 150 years ago.