President Ma Ying-jeou announced Wednesday his intention to run for the chairmanship of the ruling Kuomintang (KMT), breaking a one-year period of indecision on the matter. Ma stressed that his plan to serve concurrently as the 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 told a news conference. Such teamwork is especially important at time when the country is experiencing economic hardships, according to Ma. Ma pointed out that soon after his administration took office in May 2008, the global financial crisis and economic downturn hit Taiwan, forcing many businesses to shut down and leaving numerous people out of work. Under these circumstances, the government is laden with responsibilities such as revitalizing the economy, stabilizing the financial market and protecting the disadvantaged, he said. Although the country's economy has begun to improve through the efforts of various sectors, the government cannot relax its guard on the economic situation and should unite the nation in order to overcome the crisis, the president said. Ma last assumed the KMT chairmanship in August 2005. He resigned from the party post in February 2007, after he was indicted on charges of mishandling funds and embezzling a total of NT$11.17 million from his special allowance fund during his term as Taipei mayor between 1998 and 2006. He was later found not guilty of the charges. 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 the same year. Ma said he then promised Wu that he would make a decision on the matter by June this year. Also during Wednesday's 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. According to the KMT's schedule, registration forms for the election will be distributed June 15-16, with candidate registration to be accepted June 25-26. 