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Editorial: Ma's muddled thinking bewildering

Contrary to his image as a humble and gentle politician, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has made some unbelievably absurd comments since the presidential election. Could they be related to the pan-blue's election failure? After all, Ma served as the campaign chief for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-People First Party (PFP) alliance. How else could these remarks be explained?

In a city government meeting on disaster relief on Monday, Ma reminded city officials and military personnel to prepare for a Chinese military invasion. He seems to believe that tensions across the Taiwan Strait still exist and that Taipei, especially the Chungchen and Hsinyi districts, would be the primary targets of a Chinese attack in case of war.

Then, in a newspaper article published yesterday, Ma wrote that he had opposed the central government telling the public that holding a referendum and enacting a new constitution are universal values, as well as ways to love Taiwan and support democracy. In his article, Ma stressed that "Taiwan indepen-dence, referendums and writing a new constitution" have gradually evolved into a new holy trinity -- an infallible moral cult that cannot be challenged.

Why did Ma only mentioned the Chungcheng and Hsinyi districts while leaving out the Ta-an District, where many government officials reside? He also omitted other military districts that are equipped with the ability to counter a Chinese attack.

Moreover, aren't referendums and writing a new constitution universal values endorsed by democratic societies? Why are these two necessarily jointed with Taiwan independence? While Ma reproached the green camp for labelling others at will, he should not couple Taiwan independence -- a unique political ideal -- with the universal values of referendum and writing a new constitution. If the new holy trinity was really an infallible moral cult, as Ma has claimed, how could he question it himself?

Ma's argument reflects that many blue-camp leaders have yet to overcome the frustration of losing the election; they appear dazed and confused. They are still threatening Taipei residents by claiming that China may attack Taiwan by force if the green camp continues to rule. They cannot see the potential crises that may occur during the inauguration.

Not only have some people publicly vowed to assassinate President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), but several PFP members have threatened to turn the inauguration into a "national mourning ceremony." The ambassadors from our Latin American allies were warned against attending the inauguration. Did Ma condemn such words and deeds that seriously violate the law? No; instead he worried that the inauguration might affect the flow of traffic. As the mayor, is this really what he should say?

Looking at the logic Ma has used, it is clear that he's still looking back at those unpleasant days in the past, and has forgotten about protecting the important national event in front of him. Democratic rule of law is the basis for this nation to survive. It surpasses the interest of any one political party. If the presidential inauguration is ruined, Ma's political career will also be ruined. Is this want he wants?
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