Editorial: KMT digging its own grave

In the KMT's frantic pursuit of a political comeback, it has shown its craving for power with the so-called "pan-blue camp's" election integration in Taipei County. Seeing its political market value sliding quickly, the KMT has chosen to cooperate with the New Party, a party that is itself on the brink of collapsing. Now that the KMT has placed its own interests before those of the entire nation and teamed up with what can only be described as Beijing's mouthpiece in Taiwan, the former powerhouse is destined to implode.

Having lost is stranglehold on power, the KMT seems to have turned a blind eye to everything except its desperate desire to grab it back. Such a craving is comparable to Faust's, who sold his soul to Mephistopheles for a short-lived enjoyment of power. After the December election, the KMT is sure to become an empty shell, a scarecrow left to rot in the field. It would be hard for the KMT not to rot in the rain and sun.

In the decade of former president Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) rule, Taiwan marched steadily toward political reform and localization. Lee raised the "Taiwan first" banner and rallied a large number of local elite to the task of reforming the KMT. By bringing new blood into the party, Lee frustrated the efforts of the then opposition DPP to expand its influence in the Legislative Yuan.

It has been quite a surprise to see the out-of-power KMT team up with an ultra pro-unification party. The KMT has deliberately tried to distance itself from Lee's path of localization and reforms, and to kill the "Taiwan first" spirit. As a result, it is hemorrhaging its energetic young elite and the momentum for political reform.

Controlled by just a handful of people, the KMT has been cooperating with other parties without its central standing committee passing any resolution on the issues. It has also used double standards against Lee, criticizing him for supporting the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) and continuing to make noises about "disciplining" him for his alleged aberrations -- yet it allows Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to stump for the New Party's candidate Wang Chien-shien (王建火宣). How could the KMT convince people with such contradictory behavior?

The KMT has chosen to attack and suppress the TSU, a party that stresses the "Taiwan first" policy and political stability, and yet gives special treatment to the New Party, which supports unification with China as soon as possible. Apparently, the KMT is tumbling farther away from Taiwan's majority public opinion by the day. The chances for its return to power are also slimming by the day.

The KMT is just like coffee gone stale: it smells bad and tastes bad. Those who have stayed in the party are only there to get its funding for the year-end elections -- anywhere from NT$30 million to NT$80 million. Everything is merely an exchange of interests. No politician is hanging on because he or she truly sympathizes with the KMT's platform.

If the government can successfully crack down on the usual large-scale vote-buying that goes on with every election, the KMT will be hampered in its efforts to attract voters. By abandoning Lee's localization policy and teaming up with a pro-unification party, the KMT has dug its own grave.