The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday approved its caucus' proposal to support a presidential recall motion, with party Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
"The recall motion is not a confrontation between the pan-blue and pan-green camps, but a battle between integrity and corruption. History will judge the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) if it refuses to take the public's side [in the matter]," Ma said during a Central Standing Committee meeting at KMT headquarters.
Speaking in Mandarin, Taiwanese, Hakka and the Aboriginal Amis language, Ma attacked Chen's credibility on issues including cross-strait relations and the economy, accused the first family and the Chao family of creating a "corrupt and rotten" government, and urged the public to "recall the president together."
"I've urged President Chen to offer his resignation on numerous occasions, but apparently he is reluctant to leave his post. Top DPP officials, rather than remonstrating with him, advocate strengthening his authority. Should we allow Taiwan to idle for the next two years?" Ma said.
Ma had previously said that he wanted to wait for the first couple to be implicated directly in the scandals to which they have been linked before seeking Chen's ouster. But Ma said that the president's refusal to step down voluntarily had prompted him to agree to support a recall motion.
"If he doesn't step down, those scandals will be left unsettled. If he doesn't step down, Taiwan can't be revived," he said.
The purpose of the recall motion, Ma said, was to push for Chen's voluntary resignation. He called on the public to join the party's nationwide signature drive to demand that the president resign, while urging DPP legislators to forsake party loyalty for righteousness by not blocking the recall motion.
"Even former president Lee Teng-hui (
The KMT hopes to garner support for its recall motion and a possible move to dismiss the Cabinet by holding a rally in Kaohsiung this Saturday.
Meanwhile, the recall motion, which the KMT and People First Party (PFP) caucuses proposed to the legislature on May 31, has gained 113 signatures, more than half of the current 221 seats in the legislature.
The KMT caucus held a meeting yesterday, where 59 legislators unanimously agreed to put the recall motion up for review in an extraordinary session, which might be held on June 13 at the earliest.
"If the recall motion fails, we should need to push for the Cabinet to be dismissed and prepare for redistricting," said Tseng Yung-chuan (
The recall motion was based on Article 44 of the Law Governing Legislators' Exercise of Power (
In accordance with the law, the president can choose to respond to the recall motion seven days before it is reviewed.
The consent of two-thirds of the legislature, or 148 members, is required to send the recall motion to the voters for approval.
High threshold
"Given the high threshold required to recall the president, we are also considering a plan to topple the Cabinet in the next legislative session," said KMT caucus whip Pan Wei-kang (潘維剛), referring to the fourth legislative session scheduled to start on Sept. 19.
PFP Chairman James Soong (
The PFP was said to be opposed to the KMT's plan to topple the Cabinet for fear that the party might lose a considerable number of legislative seats after the seventh legislative election.
New system
Government officials have said that a new election system should be applied if the legislature is dissolved by the president following the Cabinet's dissolution.
"Whether it means recalling the president or toppling the Cabinet, the PFP is ready to follow Chairman Ma's lead as long as the corrupt president leaves office," Soong said.
Meanwhile, Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) legislators criticized Ma yesterday, saying that the real reason the KMT planned to ask the Cabinet to resign in September was to eliminate Premier Su Tseng-chang (
"If Su is forced to resign by the legislature and the legislature is then dissolved by the president, the influence of Su, Wang and Soong will be significantly diminished," TSU Legislator David Huang (
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