Name change is not legal: KMT lawmakers

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers yesterday pledged to boycott the budget for the nation's postal service during the next legislative session, saying the state-run firm had changed its name "illegally."

"It's a ridiculous move, and we will not allow the passage of the [name-change amendment] bill in the new legislative session," Legislator Hsu Shao-ping (徐少萍) said last night in response to Chunghwa Post Co's (中華郵政) decision to change its name to "Taiwan Post Co" (台灣郵政).

The KMT caucus condemned the postal service's decision to change its name, pledging to boycott an amendment of the Organic Act Establishing the Chunghwa Post Co, Ltd (中華郵政股份有限公司設置條例) in the legislature. An amendment to the act would be required for the state-run company to legally change its name.

If the company tried to move forward with the name change without submitting a proposal to amend the law, Hsu said, the KMT would slash the budget of the state-owned enterprise during the next legislative session.

"This name change campaign is obviously an election gimmick. It is a move by which the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) can fawn over their `deep-green' supporters," KMT Legislator Hsu Shao-ping (徐少萍) told a press conference yesterday.

People First Party (PFP) Legislator Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞), who doubles as the party's spokesman, said that although Chunghwa Post has begun to privatize, it is still a state-owned company and is subject to legislative screening and approval of its annual budget.

Lee warned Chunghwa Post not to be so confident over its right to change its name, claiming that the issue was up to the legislature.

Lee said he agreed with remarks made by Chunghwa Post labor union leader Tsai Liang-chuan (蔡兩全) earlier in the day, who said that there was nothing good about changing the name of the company in business terms, adding that it is regrettable that the names of state-run enterprises are being changed for political purposes.

KMT Legislator Kuo Su-chun (郭素春) at a separate press conference yesterday warned that replacing the words "China" and "Chinese" with "Taiwan" in the names of institutions countrywide would discourage Chinese tourists from visiting, once the nation opens up its tourist industry.

The opening up of Taiwan to Chinese tourists would begin on April 1, she said.

"How will they feel when they come and see what we did to our memorials and institutions?" Kuo added, referring to the DPP's proposal to revise the theme of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall so that it no longer honors the dictator.

Commenting on the union's protest, DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬) said the union should have consulted its members before launching the protest. It should not fight the name change based only on the opinions of a few representatives, he added.

DPP Legislator Wang Shu-hui (王淑慧) told a press conference that changing the names of state-owned enterprises has nothing to do with getting rid of the influence of China, and that employees' rights would not be influenced after the names are changed.

She added that what unions of the enterprises should care about is whether the enterprises can achieve sustainability.

"Taiwan donated a lot of money to many nations stricken by disasters in recent years, but these nations do not necessarily have diplomatic ties with us or know the `Republic of China' is actually `Taiwan,'" she said. "Therefore, all of the credit will be taken by China."