The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday revoked Legislator Lin Shih-chia’s (林世嘉) party membership, vacating a legislative seat.
In a press release issued in the afternoon, the TSU said its Central Executive Committee (CEC) had passed a proposal to revoke Lin’s membership over violation of party discipline.
The TSU, which has three at-large seats in the 113-member Legislative Yuan, could fill Lin’s seat with CEC member and former Kaohsiung city councilor Yeh Chin-ling (葉津鈴), according to the party’s order of nominations in last year’s legislative elections.
Lin has repeatedly acted on her own without regard for the party’s position and “has manipulated media coverage, as well as distorted facts,” the press release said.
The party also said Lin’s political style has been controversial and criticized by many businesspeople and party supporters.
As TSU caucus whip, Lin had unilaterally endorsed a negotiation of the controversial amendment to the Accounting Act (會計法) without notifying party headquarters or TSU Chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝), the press release said.
After public outrage at the amendment which would decriminalize local councilors and lawmakers for illegally using the public funds, Lin subsequently resigned from her post as whip on June 4.
“A legislator-at-large is obligated to endorse the party’s position and policies, as well as the party’s core values,” TSU Secretary-General Lin Chih-chia (林志嘉) was quoted as saying in the release.
Telephone calls to Lin Shih-chia and Lin Chih-chia remained unanswered as of press time.
According to a source close to the former TSU lawmaker, who wished to remain anonymous, Lin Shih-chia attended the CEC meeting yesterday and was unaware such a proposal existed.
The CEC expelled Lin after she left the meeting, the source said.
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