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Editorial: Lee Jye breaks free of party shackles

On Friday, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) revoked Minister of National Defense Lee Jye's (李傑) party membership, accusing him of kowtowing to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government.

The reason cited by the KMT's Evaluation and Disciplinary Committee is a perfect illustration of the party's confusion when it comes to prioritizing loyalty to the country versus that to the party.

The KMT's move comes at a critical time, when it has a good chance of regaining the presidency after eight years of DPP rule. While the action against Lee may have helped consolidate and unify the party's hardliners, it will do little -- and could even alienate -- moderates and non-partisan voters.

From the KMT's perspective, Lee committed a grievous sin by saying he would "only listen" to the ruling party. The KMT blasted him for "seriously jeopardizing military ethics" and for "fawning" over the DPP government. Such statements reflect fundamental misconceptions that just highlight how out of touch the KMT is with the times.

The KMT logic dictates that since the party helped found the "Republic of China," the nation and the party are one and the same. Consequently, although the KMT is now the opposition party and the DPP has the right to govern on behalf of the people, it is wrong for Lee, as a government official, to follow the instructions of the DPP government and put them ahead of party interests.

The KMT seems to have overlooked the fact that this nation belongs to the people and the power resides in the people, not the KMT -- regardless of whether the nation is called the "Republic of China," the "Republic of China on Taiwan," or the "Republic of Taiwan."

The people gave executive power to Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) during the last presidential election. As a government official and a member of the military, Lee's loyalty and allegiance rightfully belong first to the nation and the government.

The KMT's backward mentality makes one highly suspicious and skeptical of any proposal to form a "joint government" composed of members from different political parties.

If government officials from different parties decided to listen only to their own parties whenever there is a clash of opinions, not only would the chairman of the opposition party be essentially allowed to wield powers comparable to those of the president, but the operation of the entire government would come to a standstill.

Almost all KMT members who have held posts in the DPP government have at one time or another faced allegations of "betraying" their party. Witness what happened to Tang Fei (唐飛), who served as premier during Chen's first term of presidency.

The tension is worst when the post is related to security and the military. The friction between Lee and his party simply built up over time.

First was the standoff between the DPP government and the pan-blue camp over the special budget for arms purchases. This was followed by several incidents in which members of the military were sanctioned or punished for acting in opposition to the president and the government. The removal of the late dictator Chiang Kai-shek's (蔣介石) statues from military bases was the straw that broke the camel's back.

In the absence of affiliation with any political party, Lee will at last be able to perform his job impartially without any strings attached. How bad can that possibly be?
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