President Ma Ying-jeou has said that he and his aides will stick to the principles of lawfulness and frugality while seeking the chairmanship of the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) , Legislative Yuan Vice Speaker Tseng Yung-chuan said Monday. Tseng, who picked up candidate registration forms for the KMT chairmanship on behalf of Ma that day, relayed the president's message that in his run for the party chairmanship, lawfulness and frugality will be the supreme guiding principles and that his campaign headquarters will operate in a spirit of simplicity and efficiency. 'The campaign headquarters will be operated by volunteers only and no extra spokesmen or officials will be established for the election,' Tseng quoted Ma as saying. Ma announced June 10 his intention to run for the KMT chairmanship, breaking a one-year silence on the matter. Upon making the announcement, Ma said that his plan to serve concurrently as the nation's president and as party chairman is not intended to expand his presidential power, but rather to more effectively fulfill his responsibilities. 'I hope my bid will be supported by the party members in the interest of facilitating closer cooperation between the ruling party and the administration and achieving more effective government, ' Ma said at the June 10 news conference to announce his bid. According to the president, incumbent KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung first floated the idea of Ma returning to the party helm in April 2008 -- one month after he was elected president -- and raised the proposal again in September that same year. Ma said that at the time, he promised Wu that he would make a decision on the matter by June this year. Also during the June 10 news conference, Wu said his support for the idea of Ma as party chairman remains unchanged and that he will not run in the next chairmanship election now that Ma has decided to stand as a candidate. It remains unclear if the election slated for July 26 will draw any other aspirants. 