TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Business tycoon Terry Gou set foot in Kinmen again on Tuesday (Aug. 22) to commemorate the 823 Artillery Bombardment and reiterate his initiative for peace in Kinmen to ensure cross-strait stability.
Speaking at the Taipei Songshan Airport earlier in the day, Gou deflected questions about whether he would announce his presidential race during the two-day Kinmen trip and if there will be a meeting with the Kuomintang (KMT) presidential hopeful Hou Yu-ih, who is also scheduled to visit Kinmen later that day.
"My main purpose in visiting Kinmen is to commemorate the 823 Artillery Bombardment and promote my initiative for peace in Kinmen," Gou told reporters.
He emphasized, "Cross-strait peace will not see the light of day if Kinmen fails to promote peace initiatives, which will impact Taiwan, Asia, and the world."
A few hours before Gou's Kinmen visit, former Miaoli County magistrate Hsu Yao-chang announced his withdrawal from the KMT party after the party castigated his remarks at Gou's rally on Aug. 10, saying, "We need to take down the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but also the KMT."
In response, Gou expressed shock over Hsu's decision and stressed that his move to leave the KMT was likely "out of deep love and care for the party."
Hsu became the second political figure to resign from the KMT this year after Changhua County Council Speaker Hsieh Tien-lin announced his departure in July, as both Hsu and Hsieh expressed dissatisfaction with the in-party tensions and disappointment toward the party's loss of direction.