TPP Chair Ko Wen-je makes presidential ambitions clear after returning from US tour

TPP Chair Ko Wen-je on Friday returned to Taiwan after a 20 day visit to the U.S, where he told reporters he planned to register as a presidential candidate. He did not appear to be interested in responding to a call from KMT leader Eric Chu to join forces with the KMT. He’s expected to formally announce his presidential bid at a press conference before May 20.

Upon hearing people address him as “president,” TPP Chair Ko Wen-je was all smiles. He arrived in the international airport in Taoyuan after a nearly three-week tour of the U.S. He received a warm welcome, and among them was a surprise guest, his wife Peggy Chen.

Peggy Chen
Wife of Ko Wen-je
I missed you a lot. It was OK for the first week, but after two weeks I felt it was a bit weird being all by myself. By the third week, I missed you so much.

During Ko’s trip to the U.S., he was seen going in and out of the AIT headquarters three times, and he also met former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. It was obvious that he was pleased with his efforts and had met the people he needed to meet. Recently, KMT leader Eric Chu has called for cooperation with other parties to take down the DPP, giving rise to speculation that he intends to cooperate with the TPP. Ko, however, is not having it.

Ko Wen-je
TPP chair
I’ve said before that I don’t agree with this kind of thing. Why remove the DPP or form a non-DPP alliance? Taiwan belongs to everyone. You can’t say that one political group needs to be eliminated. I still advocate a coalition government that can unite Taiwan.

Ko rejected Chu’s proposal once again. When asked what he thought of the New Taipei City Council changing its time table to push forward the question time for New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih, Ko had all his guns blazing.

Ko Wen-je
TPP Chairman
I don’t think this is right. In order to get an individual out of trouble, the general question time has been moved ahead of the question times for each city government department. I don’t think what the KMT is doing here is right, it’s not right to accept this situation. I think they are losing points for this.

Ko seems to clearly have presidential ambitions. And, when asked if he would get a presidential registration form, Ko did not evade and rewarded reporters with a straight answer.

Ko Wen-je
TPP Chairman
I’ll go and do it tomorrow. After out party ratifies it, I’ll hold a formal press conference. It should be before May 20.

Ko seems determined to take part in the presidential election in 2024 with no space for cooperation with the KMT.

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