Following their recent revelations of alleged scandals and tarnishing of the image of President Chen Shui-bian (
The pan-blue camp's frenzied attacks seemingly damage the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) clean image but actually expose the closely knit pan-blue camp's "black gold community."
If we review former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Chen Che-nan's (
Although all three cases involve corruption and profiteering, and the suspects have all denied the accusations, Hsu was released on NT$2.5 million (US$77,000) bail, while Chen Che-nan and Chao were taken into custody owing to fears that they would escape.
When investigating Hsu's case, prosecutors were able to implement the principle of closed investigations, and the media also stayed within bounds and did not seek to direct the handling of the case.
Strangely, however, in Chen Che-nan's and Chao's cases, the news media are able to publish the latest information as soon as investigators find new clues. The difference in treatment of Chen Che-nan and Chao compared with Hsu clearly shows where most of the media belongs on the political spectrum.
The pan-blue camp has sensationalized the Chen Che-nan corruption and the Chao insider trading scandals as a way to question the DPP's anti-corruption credentials, but it fails to mention its own corruption. It has made strenuous efforts to get Liang Po-hsun (
Liang accused both the pan-blue and pan-green camps of having accepted political donations from him in the past, but he is dissatisfied with the DPP government because even after apparently accepting his donations, it did nothing to please him.
Liang's accusations actually provide evidence of the KMT's tradition of "taking money to do things." Accepting money without doing what you promised is fraud; corruption is carrying out illegal activities in return for money.
Many of the pan-blue camp's actions only serve to highlight their close-knit "black-gold community." How could the people of Taiwan invite them back to power without the greatest trepidation? If they want to eliminate corrupt politics, they should make sure that the pan-blue camp remains in opposition while getting rid of the few rotten apples in the DPP government. This is the only way to eradicate black-gold politics in Taiwan.
The slogan should not be, "Chen must resign in order to maintain clean politics and safeguard Taiwan." Rather, it should be, "Do not allow the KMT back, and there will be no black gold."
Translated by Lin Ya-ti
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