離開
進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Ko says he, TAO are opponents
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je delivers a speech when attending a seminar held by the Taipei Mortuary Services Office yesterday to promote “green burials.” Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
ANSWERING QUESTIONS: A presidential race featuring three well-matched candidates was a possibility, and a poll that no one would be ‘bound to win, the Taipei mayor said
By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je （柯文哲） yesterday said his relationship with China’s Taiwan Affairs Office （TAO） is that of “opponents.”
“The TAO and I have an opponent relationship, because we often have to exchange blows with each other and engage in attack and defense,” Ko said in response to questions from reporters. “Actually, we exchange blows at the twin-city forum every year. The worst case was when we were preparing for the Taipei 2017 Summer Universiade.”
The questions were prompted by an article on Saturday by Want Want China Times Group chairman Tsai Eng-meng （蔡衍明） in the China Times that said Ko should explain his relationship with the TAO to the public.
Ko said Tsai should be equally forthcoming.
“We have an opponent relationship, so what is the Want Want chairman’s relationship with the TAO? Will you answer it yourself?” the mayor said.
Asked if he considers himself to be Taiwanese or Chinese, Ko said the term “Chinese” has different meanings based on three different perspectives — cultural, economic and political.
“Taiwan is in the Chinese cultural sphere, and none of us would deny this fact,” Ko said.
Whether Taiwan is part of the Chinese economy is discussible, but at present, “it is impossible to say Taiwan is part of political China,” he said.
Asked whether Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou （郭台銘）, who placed second in the Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） presidential primary, seems to lack the courage to run for president, Ko said he always believed in “letting nature take its course” when it came to Gou deciding to run for president.
However, he has also been thinking about whether cooperating with Gou could match the Taiwanese society’s demands.
After reading the results of two polls on Monday, he is convinced that a presidential race among three well-matched candidates is possible, and that none would be “bound” to win, Ko said.
“Going back to purely a battle between pro-unification and pro-independence [camps] is not good for Taiwan’s long-term development,” Ko said. “Can there be another dimension to discuss for the next election?”
Asked if he would continue to support Gou if the KMT were to replace its presidential candidate, Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu （韓國瑜）, with Gou, Ko said there are different levels of support, and that he learned from last year’s mayoral elections that not all of his fans would give their backing to a person he supports.
During a televised interview on Saturday, Ko said that it was unlikely that the KMT would replace Han, because Han has at least 2.5 million supporters.
In a TV interview on Monday night, Ko said that if Guo cannot explain how he would not be affected by the US, Japan and China, nations in which Hon Hai has large investments, Gou would certainly lose the election even if he supported him.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
http://192.168.5.20/TT/newslist.php?day=2019-08-17
