Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) yesterday reiterated that he would not file an internal appeal to repeal the revocation of his Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) membership by the party’s Central Evaluation and Disciplinary Committee.
The deadline for the appeal against the revocation decision made by the Central Evaluation and Disciplinary Committee on Sept. 11 was midnight today.
Should Wang file an appeal, the matter will be discussed by the party’s Anti-Corruption Commission.
Wang had been accused by the Special Investigation Division (SID) of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office on Sept. 6 of lobbying then-minister of justice Tseng Yung-fu (曾勇夫), Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office head prosecutor Chen Shou-huang (陳守煌) and High Prosecutors’ Office prosecutor Lin Shiow-tao (林秀濤) on behalf of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) for his role in the Formosa Telecom Investment Co (全民電通) scandal on charges of breach of trust and violating the Business Accounting Act (商業會計法).
The KMT’s decision to revoke Wang’s party membership would have invalidated Wang’s legislator status and made him ineligible to continue as legislative speaker, but the motion had been strangled by Wang’s provisional injunction to the Taipei District Court to retain his party membership, which the court granted until the final ruling requiring a NT$9.38 million (US$315,000) guarantee, paid to the KMT.
The KMT had hoped that Wang would contest the party’s decision through internal channels, ie, the party’s Anti-Corruption Commission, and had instructed staff to work over the weekend in case Wang wished to hand in his complaint.
KMT spokesperson Yin Wei (殷瑋) said yesterday evening that the party did not receive Wang’s complaint.
KMT Culture and Communication Committee director Fan Chiang Tai-chi (范姜泰基) said that though the deadline was technically until the closing of the office yesterday, the party would extend the deadline to midnight.
Wang said that although he knew the party was sincere in its efforts to reach out to him, he has not changed his mind about how he would resolve the issue, which he laid out in the statement he issued on Oct 1.
The KMT on Sept. 30 lost an appeal against Taipei District Court’s decision and decided earlier this month not to bring the case to the Supreme Court.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
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