New Power Party Co-Founder Huang Kuo-chang Quits To Join TPP
Huang Kuo-chang, co-founder of the progressive New Power Party, has quit to join the centrist Taiwan People's Party, backing its candidate Ko Wen-je for president.
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00:00 a political bombshell less than two months from a crucial election.
00:04 This prominent figure in Taiwan's progressive circles
00:07 has made a dramatic break with much of what he stood for.
00:10 Huang Guochang rose to national prominence in 2014
00:13 alongside the student activists protesting a trade pact with China.
00:18 China claims Taiwan and has even said it will use military force to take it.
00:22 Worried about Taiwan's sovereignty, students took over the legislature.
00:26 Their three-week sit-in saw the deal called off.
00:29 Buoyed by this success, Huang helped found the New Power Party,
00:33 a new youthful force in politics.
00:35 For a time, it looked set to take on Taiwan's two-party system,
00:39 pushing the country towards the left and towards independence.
00:42 Huang served as one of the party's early lawmakers.
00:46 A decade on, though, that adrenaline has long since worn off.
00:50 The party has lost key members and today has just three legislative seats.
00:55 Frustrated by the two main parties' continued hold on the country,
00:58 Huang's jumping back into the political fray.
01:01 But this time, he's going for the latest hot name in third-party politics.
01:05 I hope that President Kuo will keep his promise of running for office
01:09 and build a government that uses people as a tool to cross the party line.
01:14 Polls show Kuo Wenzhe's Taiwan People's Party has a shot at winning,
01:18 especially if they rally the rest of the opposition.
01:21 But this is a very different third party.
01:23 It's centrist, populist and far less suspicious of China.
01:28 In a leaked policy paper, the party's even floated the idea
01:31 of reviving the very trade deal Huang and his student friends fought to defeat.
01:36 In a joint interview, Kuo said he's proud to have Huang on board.
01:40 I'd like to invite you to be our party's deputy.
01:42 We want to win over Huang.
01:45 Win over Huang.
01:46 We want to join the People's Party.
01:47 Yes.
01:48 We are of great importance.
01:49 Reeling from the news, the new power party held a defiant press conference.
01:54 It's different from what President Kuo had in mind.
01:58 I can only wish him well.
02:00 I also thank him for leaving.
02:02 I hope he will be more willing to listen,
02:06 be more reasonable and be more determined to follow the path of local progress.
02:12 The defection of a single politician may not change the course of the election,
02:16 but it's a major blow to a party that's still trying to change Taiwan's political landscape.
02:21 And it shows that even with the election so close,
02:24 there's always room for another surprise.
02:27 Andy Hsueh and John Ventriest for Taiwan Plus.
02:30 (speaking in foreign language)