It has only been days since President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took over as chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), but it is already clear that he faces many obstacles.
Despite much opposition, Ma insisted on taking the position with an eye to regulating the behavior of mischievous party members.
Many Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators opposed then president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) “four noes and one without” pledge made in his inauguration speech in 2000 and the concept of “a future one China.” “Four noes” referred to not declaring Taiwanese independence, not changing the national title, not including the special state-to-state doctrine in the Constitution and not promoting a referendum on unification or independence. “One without” referred to not abolishing the National Unification Council or the National Unification Guidelines.
Chen then took over as DPP chairman in 2002 to discipline those legislators. The method seemed effective and helped force the legislature to pass the bill to halve the number of legislative seats. Last year, as KMT legislators slashed a batch of Ma’s nominees for the Control Yuan and Examination Yuan, Ma decided to emulate Chen by doubling as KMT chairman to discipline misbehaving party members.
The problem is that wielding the party whip and playing it tough is not enough to make party members behave. A party chairman that is capable and has a lot of prestige does not need to establish authority by resorting to disciplinary measures. On the other hand, if a party chairman is unpopular and everyone fears being an ally during elections, relying on party regulations is impractical. Unfortunately, this is the situation Ma is currently facing.
Moreover, top-down leadership is not sufficient to win support; people must also feel that they are participating in the decision-making process. Now that neither the premier, deputy premier, key Cabinet members, Ma’s close advisers and even senior legislators attend the KMT’s Central Standing Committee (CSC) meetings, it is clear that the committee is a place for policy promotion, not debate, and it is questionable to what degree it serves any use in mobilizing legislators.
Additionally, some members are only interested in using their position to do business with China, while others use it to launch attacks in the media. CSC meetings appear boisterous and they certainly must give Ma a headache. He may be emulating Chen in wanting to use the committee to control legislators, but the results will be very different.
KMT Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) is another challenge for Ma. If he restrains her, Ma will be accused of suppressing dissent and breaking his promises that the party will not direct the government and to reform the KMT. If, however, he lets Lo off the hook, he won’t be able to bring other legislators into line, forfeiting the reason for doubling as party chairman in the first place.
Ma’s promise during his first term as KMT chairman in 2005 to rid the party of its ill-gotten assets — selling assets with the left hand, while directing the money into the Central Investment Holding Co (CIC, 中央投資公司) Co with the right hand — was a ruse that damaged his reputation. The solution he has proposed this time is not any better. Although CIC will be sold, Ma said the proceeds from the sale will be used to pay for pensions, party operational costs, party think tanks and scholarships. The remainder will be donated to charity and future election campaign funds will mainly come from public donations.
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