KMT nears real change, but it still needs help HoonTing@Taipei Times 20200713
In protest of President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) nomination of former Presidential Office
secretary-general Chen Chu (陳菊) as Control Yuan president, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators
late last month occupied the legislative chamber on the eve of an extraordinary
session. The protest was seen as the
party’s attempt to pull itself back together after having lost its direction in
the campaign for this year’s presidential election.
Despite the KMT caucus’ claim that the protest would last for three days
and three nights, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators broke into the
legislative chamber within 24 hours, mocking the KMT for not being able to
protest without air conditioning. Even
some pro-blue camp political commentators criticized the attempt.
Strategically, the occupation was important. The KMT hoped to use this protest over the
Dragon Boat Festival holiday to reverse its unfavorable situation, while KMT
Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) used his legislative role to supervise the scene, as he wanted to use
this key event to establish his authority.
The KMT should have emphasized that as Tsai has pledged to downsize the
nation’s five-branch system to a three-branch system by abolishing the
Examination Yuan and the Control Yuan through a constitutional amendment, it is
unnecessary to nominate a Control Yuan president or members, or at the very
least it is unnecessary to fill all its vacancies.
The party should have also urged the DPP to allow its lawmakers to vote
on the nomination freely without exercising party discipline, and it should
have suggested that Tsai replace Chen with lawyer Yu Mei-nu (尤美女).
Unfortunately, not only did the KMT not sense the strategic significance
of the protest and hold on to the end, it also lost its power to manipulate the
political agenda. Why then should
Taiwanese care about the party’s survival?
Chiang is the first KMT chairman after former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) who is
friendly to the US and Japan as well as vigilant against the Chinese Communist
Party (CCP), so he is unlikely to curry favor with Beijing.
Taiwan completed its autonomy through direct president elections and has
gone been three government transitions. The
KMT’s transformation into a Taiwan-focused party that upholds universal values
is a key indicator of Taiwan’s democratic consolidation.
Once Taiwan’s major political parties become Taiwan-centered, any elected
president would be pro-Taiwan and voters could stop worrying about a five-star
flag flying over the Presidential Office Building.
A friend recalled many years ago how a leader of the KMT’s pro-Taiwan
camp lobbied then-president and party chairman Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) to lift a ban
on new political parties. He pointed out
that if Taiwan had no other parties than the KMT, Taiwanese would turn to the
CCP.
However, if other pro-local parties were available, they could then
replace the KMT if it lost public support.
This is the logic that protects Taiwan and does not promote party
interests.
Asian governments often end up with one-party rule, like the CCP, or a
dominant party, such as Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party. The former inevitably leads to corruption,
and the latter loses vitality.
Although the DPP has regained power, the worry is that the lack of a
challenge from a strong political rival would cause the dominant party to
decline year by year, and voters would pay the price.
At this critical moment of the KMT’s transformation, perhaps those who
truly care about protecting the nation should encourage the party to focus
harder on Taiwan.
HoonTing is a political commentator.
Translated by Eddy Chang
https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2020/07/13/2003739812
沒有留言:
張貼留言
請網友務必留下一致且可辨識的稱謂
顧及閱讀舒適性,段與段間請空一行