Taipei, Sept. 11 (CNA) Taiwan's ruling Kuomintang on Saturday sent an ultimatum to former Taiwan Governor James Soong, a member of the ruling party, demanding that he withdraw his presidential bid or face punishment.
The warning to Soong to refrain from attacking the party's interests was the first issued by the KMT since it announced the party's ticket of Vice President Lien Chan and Premier Vincent Siew for the presidential election scheduled for March 2000
If Soong fails to follow the warning, the KMT will refer to party regulations to decide on a suitable punishment for him, said KMT Secretary-General John Chang.
High ranking KMT officials said that Soong has obviously violated party regulations since the "Lien-Siew ticket" has been approved by the party, and noted that the punishment for running for president without being granted permission by the party will be "very harsh."
The officials revealed that a report on how to handle Soong has been completed and sent to party Secretary General John Chang and the Evaluation and Discipline Committee for further evaluation. Measures will be taken shortly if Soong does not stop his election bid, they added.
Demands from KMT grassroots members to quickly punish Soong are becoming stronger, and most grassroots cadres have also requested party members to refrain from canvassing for the popular former governor who is consistently the front runner among the various presidential candidates according to every published poll. (By Amanda Chang)
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