KMT: should we dump our leaders?

Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng invites Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators to discuss the future direction of the KMT after its electoral defeat on March 20. The meeting was hosted by Wang as KMT Vice Chairman at his official residence in Taipei yesterday. PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

What course should the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) take following its second defeat in its attempt to claim the keys to the Presidential Office?

Such was the question lingering in the minds of many pan-blue politicians, many of whom have openly and vocally voiced their anxiety and concerns about the party's political ideology and leadership in the past few days.

"The declining approval ratings in the polls suggest that the weekly demonstrations are no longer approved of by our supporters," KMT Legislator Hsu Chung-hsiung (徐中雄) said. "The worst scenario would be that it will have a grave impact on the electoral outlook of the party during the year-end legislative election."

Hsu was referring to the weekly demonstrations spearheaded by the KMT-People First Party (PFP) alliance since the presidential election on March 20.

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) defeated KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) in the election by a margin of less than 30,000 votes.

"The two parties are of different political natures. The PFP is welcome to do whatever its wants in being daring and radical ... The KMT belongs not just to one or two people alone but to everyone, if Lien feels the election was unfair and refuses to concede defeat, then [he] should present a clear way of approaching the issue and tell party members what their next step should be."

KMT Legislator Chen Hung-chang

Lien refused to concede defeat, and claiming voting irregularities -- although he has not been able to produce proof -- filed a lawsuit demanding a recount. Lien also raised questions about the assassination attempt on Chen and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), in which bullets grazed Chen's stomach and hit Lu's knee.

Lien claimed that it was an attempt to win sympathy votes, as well as charging that the implementation of a "national security mechanism" following the shooting prevented a large number of military personnel from voting.

Saturday's demonstration in front of the Presidential Office was the latest in a series of protests staged by the KMT-PFP alliance in its effort to challenge the election result.

The demonstration turned ugly and violent, spiraling out of control after some protesters refused to leave the site when the event's permit expired. Clashes and scuffles broke out between riot police and the angry demonstrators in which 127 people were injured, including 86 police officers, 27 protesters and 14 reporters, according to a report by the Taipei City Police Bureau's Chungcheng First Precinct Chief We Su-lu (吳思陸).

A number of KMT legislators have questioned the wisdom of holding further street demonstrations to increase the pressure on Chen.

"The [violent clashes] have done a lot of damage to the KMT," Hsu said. "The pain I feel is more than I can put into words. I truly hope that the KMT, having existed for more than a century, will not be vaporized in such a short time."

Saying that the KMT can not afford to lose another presidential election, Hsu, a committee member known for his "pro-localization" stance, said that the party should now start considering issues such as a possible merger with the PFP, nominations for the year-end legislative elections and introspection as to why the party lost its presidential bid on March 20.

Voices urging the party to engage post-election reflection have surfaced since Wednesday's weekly Central Standing Committee meeting.

Hung Yu-chin (洪玉欽), a former legislator who was elected to the party's Central Standing Committee last August, warned that the future is bleak for the party unless it follows through with internal reform and renames itself the Taiwan Nationalist Party.

Hung's remarks was echoed by KMT Legislator Chen Ken-teh (陳根德), who stressed that only by adjusting the party's political stance on localization could the KMT gain an opportunity to develop further.

"The presidential election is over," Hsu said. "Whether or not it was fair, the KMT must admit its defeat in order to start again."

Stressing that "the roof of the KMT must not fall apart," Hsu said that for the sake of the party's continued development, it must cease its radical street demonstrations and hold steady on the "middle path" (中間路線) platform as its political line.

"The party must quickly and return to the `middle path,' or otherwise it may face a lethal blow from its supporters in the year-end legislative elections," Hsu said.

Echoing Hsu's remarks, KMT Legislator Tseng Tsai Mei-tso (曾蔡美佐) said that the party was facing a very depressing result in the year-end legislative elections if it continued with its street protests.

KMT Legislator Chen Hung-chang (陳宏昌) added that, since the KMT and the PFP were not merging, the two parties should therefore draw a definite ideological boundary.

"The two parties are of different political natures," Chen Hung-chang said, drawing attention to the fact that PFP legislators have been seen spending noticeably more time behind the microphone at the demonstrations than KMT members. "The PFP is welcome to do whatever its wants in being daring and radical. But the KMT should stick to its moderate nature."

In the midst of deliberations over the party's policy positions, the issue of changing leadership has also emerged.

"I know there are two voices within the party concerning the issue of leadership," KMT Legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖) said. "There is one group calling for consolidation of Lien's chairmanship, while there is another calling for transference of party leadership to the younger generation."

At the party's first Central Standing Committee meeting convened on March 24 after the March 20 election, senior officials of the KMT, including Vice Chairman Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) and Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), said that the party should support Lien's continued leadership and rally behind him.

Despite such remarks, there are a number of party members who face the risk of losing their nominations for the year-end legislative elections, and have been openly calling for the resignation of Lien's chairmanship in order to pave the way for new leadership.

"Chairman Lien and [KMT] Secretary-General Lin Fong-cheng (林豐正) have been nice to me, but for the sake of the party's survival, I am sorry -- I need to speak the truth," KMT Legislator Chang Chang-tsai (張昌財) said.

"The KMT must transfer its leadership to the new generation," Chang said, suggesting the party undertake a vote for a new KMT chairman.

Saying that party leaders should shoulder the responsibility for the election defeat, Chen Hung-chang echoed that "it is time to transfer party leadership to the new generation."

"The KMT belongs not just to one or two people alone but to everyone, if Lien feels the election was unfair and refuses to concede defeat, then [he] should present a clear way of approaching the issue and tell party members what their next step should be," Chen Hung-chang said.

This does not mean that no one can take care of the party if Lien were to step down, as "there are still people like Wang and Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九)," KMT Legislator Huang Chien-ting (黃健庭) said, adding that the KMT leadership should take steps to clearly explain this issue before the year-end legislative elections.

"While it is arguable as to whether or not the chairman should be replaced, the transference of leadership to the new generation is the road [the party] must take sooner or later," Huang said.

While agreeing that the party needs to re-examine its policy platform and political ideology, Tseng Tsai however stated that it is "too cruel" to talk about who should resign.

KMT Secretary-General Lin Fong-cheng had said yesterday that Lien was never against transferring leadership to the new generation, and had stressed that such was the direction the party was working toward.

Apollo Chen commented that "it is unfair to place all the blame on the candidate, as all party officials involved in the campaign should share responsibility as well."

"Even if some people stepped down from their leadership positions, that still doesn't solve the problem the party is facing. The urgent issue is ascertaining the party's development prospect and its political ideology," he said. Apollo Chen is also a member of the party's Central Standing Committee.

He made a suggestion which he thought would make a great compromise on the issue of party leadership.

"Lien and Soong do not need to step down from their chairmanship positions. By staying where they are, they can unify the pan-blue camp. But then let Wang and Ma be in charged of intra-party reform," Chen said, adding that his idea had received support from a number of fellow KMT members.

"Given both Wang and Ma's abilities and charisma, I believe it would help the party find new opportunities if the two were to cooperate," he said.