TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- Approximately 20 members of the Kuomintang (KMT) party on Tuesday (April 9) called on Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) to run for president of Taiwan in 2020, reported CNA.
Hsu Cheng-wen (徐正文), Li Wei-hua (李偉華), and Chen Mao-chia (陳茂嘉) and nearly 20 other KMT Central Committee members jointly held a press conference on Tuesday calling on Han to run for president of Taiwan and asking that the party's next national congress be convened as soon as late April or early May, rather than July, to enable them to officially nominate Han.
Hsu said that although the Democratic Progressive Party would decide on its presidential primaries in April (DPP announced it would delay the primary to May 22 on Wednesday), the KMT will battle until July, and the wounds could take time to recover. Hsu said that it is already difficult enough for the KMT to win, much less if it is not united.
According to the party's constitution, a provisional national congress can be held as long as more than half of Central Committee members or party headquarters request one. Hsu said that the joint signature by committee members would be sent to the KMT Central Standing Committee, where Fu Chung-wu (傅中武) and Yu Chia-fu (游家富) will submit the proposal for Han's run.
KMT Central Committee members calling on Han to run for president. (CNA photo)
The committee hopes that the national congress will be convened earlier to recruit the strongest candidate, Han, "to lead the KMT to victory in the 2020 presidential election." The later the national congress is held, the more disadvantageous it will be to the KMT, said Hsu.
Hsu said that an event will also be will be held in Kaohsiung to lend legitimacy to Han's run in the election. Hsu said that in addition to party representative and Central Committee members, he would drum up support from party committee chairmen in every county and city.
Hsu said that the call for Han to run is from "grass-roots voices," who are looking forward to having a new climate in 2020. Hsu said the committee hopes that the older generations of the party will know when to advance and when to retreat, and those who block Han in the early opening of the national congress will be "the ones who block the victory of the KMT and the common enemy of all. We should remove all the stones that stand in the way of Han Kuo-yu"
Han has thus far repeatedly denied any reports that he was planning to take part in the 2020 presidential race.
