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KMT legislators question merger with PFP

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday advised party Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) to ponder the possible effect on the party's support from the Minnan ethnic group when he considers a merger with the People First Party (PFP).

"The merger is one direction, but there are conditions attached to it ... the point here is that we need to know whether the merger would help us increase our votes, especially from supporters from the Minnan ethnic group," said KMT Legislator James Chen (陳健治).

Chen was among the group of KMT legislators who Lien met in batches yesterday to exchange views on the party's plan to merge with the PFP, a splinter group of the KMT.

The party's highest decision-making body, the Central Standing Committee, on Wednesday approved Lien's proposal to push for a merger with the PFP.

Chen yesterday said that the party needs to reconsider the purpose and meaning of merging with the PFP, if doing so won't help the party garner more than 50 percent of support from the Minnan ethnic group.

"It is an issue of political reality," he added.

While he reiterated his opposition to the merger plan, KMT Legislator Chen Hung-chang (陳宏昌) yesterday said that he would consider yielding to the plan only if certain conditions are met.

"Only if PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) renounces serving as the party chairman [should the merger be actualized] ... and the KMT retains its localization path after the merger" would he agree to the plan, said Chen Hung-chang.

KMT Legislators Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and Justine Huang (黃健庭) were among the legislators who met Lien yesterday.

Saying that even though a majority of legislators are in favor of the merger, Wu yesterday said that he would prefer it take place after the year-end legislative elections.

Wu's view ran counter to that of Lien, who said on Wednesday "the sooner the better" when asked about the merger's timetable.

KMT Secretary-General Lin Feng-cheng (林豐正) also said on Tuesday that the merger would be more meaningful if the deal could be finalized ahead of the year-end legislative elections.

James Chen, who singled out Lin to step down to take responsibility for the party's election failure, yesterday again directed criticism at Lin when speaking about the merger's timetable.

"If Lin, via the excuse of pushing the merger, continues to stay on in his post, that would mean that the party's campaign work for the year-end legislative elections would again fall into the hands of the same group of people [who failed already]," said James Chen. "Should that be the case, then the number of pan-blue legislative seats might possibly be reduced to 90."

Combining the number of KMT and PFP legislators, the pan-blue alliance currently holds a total of 112 seats in the 223-seat legislature.

James Chen, a former speaker for the Taipei City Council, denied he had played any role in the recent calls from a group of Taipei City pan-blue councilors who said they are planning to hold a signature drive petitioning Taipei Mayor and KMT Vice Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to run for the KMT's chairmanship.

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