Taiwan presidential candidate resigns from Apple supplier board

terry goua Taiwanese independent presidential hopeful, has resigned from the board of directors of foxconnthe provider of Manzana which he founded almost half a century ago.

The company, officially registered as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., issued a press release on Saturday night informing that Gou, its former president, had resigned for personal reasons.

It is unclear what, if any, immediate effect Gou’s decision will have on the operations of Foxconn, which ranks 20th in the 2023 Fortune Global 500 and is considered one of the world’s largest technology companies.

It is headquartered in Taiwan, but the vast majority of its manufacturing operations are in China, where it employs hundreds of thousands of people making iPhones in vast factory-dorm complexes that have sometimes seen friction between workers and management over employment conditions.

Guo announced on August 28 that he will run as an independent candidate in Taiwan’s presidential election, ending months of speculation.

At a press conference, Gou criticized the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, saying its policies have “put Taiwan at risk of war” with China, which claims the self-governing democratic island as part of its territory.

“I will definitely not allow Taiwan to become the next Ukraine”he added. Gou is more closely aligned with the China-friendly opposition Nationalist Party (KMT).

The Nationalist Party was expelled from China after the victory of Mao Zedong’s Communist Party in 1949, but still maintains that the island and the mainland are part of a single Chinese nation — as does the Communist Party, which threatens to use force to make it happen.

Gou lost in the Nationalist Party primary in 2019 and tried again this year, but the party chose New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih as its candidate. Gou had pledged to support Hou, and the party leadership considers his decision a betrayal.

However, Gou’s candidacy is seen as far-reaching, as independents lack the local political networks intrinsic to Taiwanese politics and most citizens are wary of closer ties to China.

Source: AP