Taipei, Sept. 14 (CNA) Hon Hai Precision Co. founder and aspiring presidential candidate Terry Gou (郭台銘) on Thursday named actress Tammy Lai (賴佩霞) as his running mate for Taiwan’s 2024 election.
At a presentation event in Taipei, Gou said he would depend on Lai’s “unique female perspective to foster a more equitable and gender-balanced culture in Taiwan.”
Brought onto the stage by Gou, Lai, who portrayed the president in the hit political drama “Wave Makers” (人選之人), gave an emotionally charged speech in which she urged overseas Taiwanese businesspeople to “return, invest, and remain in Taiwan.”
Touching on the country’s demographic decline, Lai said young people in Taiwan could not envision getting married and having children without a stable economy, depriving many of the joys of grandchildren.
“I’m sure we all still remember the previous incidents in Cambodia, which were undoubtedly every parent’s worst nightmare,” Lai said, referring to the trafficking and imprisonment of young Taiwanese nationals by telecoms fraud rings in Southeast Asia.
“Due to the poor economic conditions, we were unable to keep our children with us — there is no way we will allow this to happen again,” Lai added.
Lai said she would seek to communicate the credentials and policies of Gou’s independent ticket by “engaging with opposition parties, the media and most importantly, the public.”
Despite being known primarily as an actress and singer, Lai also holds a master’s degree in international relations and a Ph.D. in law from China’s Jinan University, according to Gou’s office.
She is also a writer and the founder of the “Collaborative Communications Academy,” which advocates for positive communication skills, Gou’s office said.
Gou’s vice presidential pick will also need to renounce her U.S. citizenship to be eligible to run in next year’s election, which Lai’s office said she would soon do, in a statement following Thursday’s press event.
Due to a lack of party affiliation, Gou must collect signatures from 289,667 people between Sept. 19 and Nov. 2 to make it onto the ballot, according to rules set by the Central Election Commission (CEC).
The entrepreneur-turned-politician is also required to register his independent candidacy with the CEC no later than Sept. 17 before his campaign can begin the signature drive.
However, there is speculation Gou’s campaign will seek an electoral pact with Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential nominee Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the candidate of the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT).
Indeed, Lai appeared to signal her support for a pact at Thursday’s unveiling, saying it would be her “mission” to fulfill Gou’s goal of “integrating the opposition.”
Responding to Lai’s selection, TPP Chairman Ko described her as a “strong candidate” who had been actively engaged in charitable activities in recent years.
Meanwhile, the KMT’s Hou said he had been recruited as a presidential candidate by the KMT and intends to “unite all forces to move forward.”
Asked whether he thought the announcement of Lai’s selection had been deliberately timed to coincide with the start of an eight-day trip by Hou to the United States, the KMT candidate said he had not been aware of Gou’s plans.
Also on Thursday, the nominees for the 2023 Golden Bell Awards were revealed, with Lai receiving a best supporting actress nomination in the miniseries/TV movie category for her role in “Wave Makers.”
