The Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) evaluation and discipline committee yesterday decided to revoke Chiu Teh-hung's (
"Chiu has since the [March 20] presidential election in various public settings or on TV call-in programs maliciously defamed the party and spoiled the party's image," said a statement issued by the committee yesterday.
Unsatisfied with the party's reform pace after the presidential election, Chiu, who registered his membership with the KMT last June and was the organizer of a group of KMT members that calls itself the Blue Eagle Warriors, had been outspoken in criticizing the KMT's leadership.
The statement said that the party's branch office in Miaoli County had requested the party central to consider disciplinary action against Chiu given his rhetoric and conduct "had gravely caused harm to the party's reputation."
Stating that "the KMT originally had adapted a tolerant attitude in view of Chiu's various criticism against the party," the committee said that it had nonetheless decided to revoke Chiu's membership "given that Chiu has been in frequent contact with the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) and had on July 26 formally announced to represent the TSU to run for the Miaoli County seat in the year-end legislative elections."
Thirty-year-old Chiu, chief of staff for the vice speaker of the Miaoli County Council, was best known for calling KMT Chairman Lien Chan (
Chiu on Monday accepted TSU's nomination to run in the year-end legislative elections and had last week applied for TSU membership.
In response to the party's discipline action against him, Chiu didn't say much in response but merely that he "wishes the KMT the best" and hopes the party will not oppress other young member like himself who called for party reform.
Chiu's disciplinary action is widely regarded as the last case handled by the director-general of the committee Chen Kang-chin (
The resolution passed by the committee will be forward to the Central Standing Committee, the party's highest decision-making body, for final approval.
The Central Standing Committee last week had also passed the discipline committee's resolution to expel nine members, including Lan Chien-chang (
The other eight were booted from the KMT for conduct deemed harmful to the party, such as openly endorsing President Chen Shui-bian's (
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