Several former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairmen yesterday said they are willing to help the party with its financial predicament and to initiate a peaceful protest, adding that the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee has abused its power.
KMT Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) held a closed-door meeting with former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫), former vice president Lien Chan (連戰) and former KMT chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) at KMT headquarters.
The meeting, also attended by KMT Vice Chairman Steve Chan (詹啟賢) and Secretary-General Mo Tien-hu (莫天虎), started at about 10:30am and lasted for about one and a half hours.
Photo: CNA
Mo said Hung and Chan briefed the former KMT chairmen on the party’s situation and a series of measures it plans to adopt to address its financial situation, such as reducing expenses, initiating a small donation scheme and making salary adjustments for party staffers.
“The Act Governing the Handling of Ill-gotten Properties by Political Parties and Their Affiliate Organizations [政黨及其附隨組織不當取得財產處理條例) is unconstitutional and the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee is abusing its power. All the former party chairmen at the meeting criticized the committee actions as being ‘green violence’ and ‘green terror,’” Mo said at a news conference.
Mo quoted the former KMT chairmen as saying that should the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) succeed with its political agenda, it would be a retrogression in Taiwan’s democratization and would leave no room for opposing parties in the nation.
Ma compared the Executive Yuan-affiliated committee to a fascist regime and urged KMT headquarters to bring the matter to the attention of the international community via an open letter or an international media conference, Mo said.
“They also called for party solidarity and an unreserved, collective effort to help the KMT ride out the difficulties at hand. They believe that a peaceful protest should be staged if necessary and that they are willing to be a part of it,” Mo said.
In light of some KMT members’ willingness to pay higher party fees to help assuage the party’s financial burden, Mo said the former KMT chairmen asked party headquarters to devise a flexible payment system, while offering to make contributions themselves and help raise funds.
The meeting between incumbent and former KMT chairs came one day after the committee announced that the KMT is entitled to request access to its frozen and presumed ill-gotten assets should its legally obtained funds and properties prove insufficient to cover personnel expenses.
The KMT has accused the DPP of carrying out a political vendetta following the committee’s freezing of a KMT bank account late last month over the issuance of 10 checks worth a collective NT$520 million (US$16.5 million).
Mo also said that Hung gave her itinerary for her planned trip to China at the end of this month, during which she is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), to the former party heads.
“As their subsequent discussions focused mainly on the issue of party assets, they did not talk about Hung’s China trip afterward,” Mo said.
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