President Ma registers with KMT for re-election

Ma asked voters to give him another four years to continue his reform, allowing each and every citizen to enjoy the benefits of economic recovery.

He registered his candidacy at the KMT headquarters in Taipei, accompanied by about 20 young supporters who will be eligible to vote for the first time. He placed a deposit of NT$7 million with the KMT for the primary.

Asked who would be his running mate, Ma said he will not make a decision until he is formally nominated by the party.

Ma is not expected to see competition from fellow KMT members for the presidential candidacy, but incumbent Vice President Vincent Siew may not be renominated, with Premier Wu Den-yih being a potential candidate to replace him.

The president did not spell out any specific plans for thew next four years, but summed up his achievements since taking office.

He said his administration managed to lift the country out of the economic tsunami in 2008, and achieved an economic growth of 10.82 percent last year.

But he stressed that economic growth is not the only target of the government, as it is equally important to allow all people to share the fruits of growth.

He noted that his government has revised social welfare laws to help the poor and introduced the luxury tax to clamp down speculative real estate transactions.

The government has also just decided to give all civil servants a 3 percent raise beginning July 1, in the hopes that private enterprises will follow suit to increase their employees' salaries.

He also emphasized that economic development should not be achieved at the expense of the environment, citing his Friday decision to terminate the controversial Kuokuang project to build a petrochemical plant on wetlands in Changhua.

He said a balance between the economic development and environmental protection must be maintained.

In his hometown of Chiayi attending a public event, Vice President Siew declined to comment on speculation on the chances of him serving again as Ma's running mate.

Siew's age and health may stand in the way. The 72-year-old vice president had a lung cancer operation about two years ago.

KMT sources commented that Wu is a likely candidate, having shown strong performance in his leadership of the Cabinet, according to the United Evening News.

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