Source:
https://scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3016825/billionaire-foxconn-boss-terry-gou-opens-clear-lead-over-kmt
China/ Politics

Billionaire Foxconn boss Terry Gou opens up clear lead over KMT rivals in race to become next president of Taiwan

  • Latest polls show Gou’s support reaching 33 per cent while his rival Han Kuo-yu has slipped to 22 per cent
  • Han’s support has slipped following a series of errors while his rival’s support for the island’s sovereignty has helped bolster his position
Terry Gou has taken a clear lead ahead of the KMT primaries this month. Photo: AP

Billionaire Foxconn founder Terry Gou Tai-ming appears to be in pole position to become the opposition Kuomintang’s candidate in next year’s Taiwanese presidential election after the latest poll gave him a clear lead.

Capitalising on a series of missteps by his rival Han Kuo-yu, the KMT mayor of Kaohsiung, Gou has seen his once-flagging support rising sharply.

Han, who helped the mainland-friendly KMT to recapture control of 15 of the 22 cities and counties in Taiwan after his in November’s local government elections, was originally tipped to be the party’s

standard bearer in January’s election, with polling showing him well ahead of Gou and incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen.

But in the latest opinion survey released on Monday by U Media, a relatively neutral online news outlet set up by veteran journalist Chou Tien-jui, Gou emerged as the frontrunner in the KMT primaries, which will be conducted through telephone opinion polls between July 8 and 14.

Of the five KMT candidates, Gou received 33.9 per cent of support from respondents, leading Han, who was on 22 per cent.

Former New Taipei mayor Eric Chu Li-lun stood at 19.7 per cent, former Taipei county magistrate Chou Hsi-wei was on 1.3 per cent and Chang Ya-chung, the president of the KMT’s Sun Yat-sen School, was on 0.9 per cent.

U Media’s Chou said Gou’s support had been boosted by his performance during a platform presentation on Saturday, where he promised to improve the island’s economy while bridging the gap between rural areas and the cities and between rich and poor.

Chou also said that the decline in support for Han was partly down to the fact that many voters thought he should focus on his duties as mayor of Kaohsiung.

Kaohsiung mayor Han Kuo-yu has seen his support slipping. Photo: AFP
Kaohsiung mayor Han Kuo-yu has seen his support slipping. Photo: AFP

Observers said Gou’s vocal support for Taiwan’s sovereignty and his resignation as head of Foxconn, which has extensive investments on the mainland had helped boost his support.

On Saturday, Gou used the island’s official name, saying “the Republic of China is our country” and promised he would act as the “ROC captain” if elected.

By contrast Han, who is seen as Beijing’s favoured candidate, has been reluctant to criticise the mainland Chinese government for its efforts to bring the island back into the fold.

Beijing has always considered the island a renegade province that must eventually be reunited with the mainland and has never renounced the use of force to do so.

Since the independence-leaning Tsai came to power in 2016 and refused to accept the “one-China” principle, Beijing has suspended relations with the government in Taipei and sought to increase the pressure on the island by conducting a series of war games in the Strait of Taiwan and by poaching three of its last remaining diplomatic allies.

Earlier this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping asked the island to hold unification talks under the “one country, two systems” model applied in Hong Kong and Macau.

President Tsai Ing-wen’s fortunes have recovered from a low point last year. Photo: Reuters
President Tsai Ing-wen’s fortunes have recovered from a low point last year. Photo: Reuters

Tsai rebuffed these overtures and her firm stance has been credited with reviving her political fortunes from a nadir of 18 per cent in November.

Last month she was confirmed as the DPP’s candidate in next year’s presidential election after beating a challenge by former premier William Lai Ching-te.

By contrast Han’s meeting with officials of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in February in Hong Kong raised suspicions about his support for the “one country, two systems” model.

His response to the mass protests against a controversial extradition law with the mainland prompted further criticism when he said he did not know anything about the “parade” on June 9 when a million people took to the streets of Hong Kong.

Nevertheless, Han has continued to campaign, holding four mass rallies around the island that attracted thousands of supporters.