TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Reformers in the Kuomintang (KMT) have created a Facebook group inviting debate on the opposition party’s stand on cross-strait issues in a bid to transform itself after taking a beating in the general elections.

Titled “Plus One (+1),” the public group seeks to generate discussion on the path to take for the largest opposition party in Taiwan, said KMT Taipei City Councilor Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強), one of the group’s founders and also one of the party’s disaffected youth who have called for an overhaul of the party.

According to the manifesto of the group, cross-strait issues weigh heavily in Taiwan’s presidential elections. While acknowledging the threat of Beijing, Taiwan should leverage its cultural and ethnical affinities with China to find a way to engage with it in a way that serves the country’s best interest.

The KMT has traditionally favored closer ties with China, which is partly blamed for its losses in both the presidential and legislative elections held earlier this month as pointed out by some observers. There has been a growing resentment against Beijing among the public of Taiwan due to its ratcheted-up pressure and how it has handled Hong Kong’s anti-government protests.

Lo believes the party’s rout in the elections can be partly attributed to its failure to have a say in the online space, wrote CNA.“When you fall down, you should pick yourself back up,” he said, stressing the need to reach out to a greater audience through online platforms.

Anyone, including those interested in vying for the chairmanship of the party, is welcome to express their opinion on cross-strait and related issues, he said. Nearly 40,000 members have joined in the group as of Monday (Jan. 20) morning.