The Dec. 3 local government elections focused attention on the Kaohsiung Rapid Transport Corp (KRTC) scandal, and as the main culprit Chen Che-nan (陳哲男) was formerly the Presidential Office's deputy secretary-general, this made the administration an easy target for the opposition. This was not the only corruption scandal brought to light during the course of the campaign. There was some truth in the torrent of accusations and suspicion that the campaign generated, and the effect was exacerbated by the public's diminished faith in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), who have been inclined to give credence to accusations even when evidence was lacking.
In the last presidential elections, the DPP scrapped through. After their defeat in the legislative elections, the DPP said they would take heed of the lessons taught them by that election, but in fact they did nothing. Not only were they engulfed in corruption scandals, they also failed to remain true to their ideals.
It was only in the run up to the local government elections that some reforms were pushed through, but these were seen as insincere attempts to appeal to the public. Moreover, the same old tactics of smearing opponents once again came to the fore. No wonder the DPP suffered such a thumping defeat last Saturday.
Whether one chooses to call the Dec. 3 elections a skirmish ahead of the 2008 presidential elections, or a "mid-term exam," the DPP was soundly defeated. Moreover, they have not yet been able to disperse the effects of the opposition's smear campaign, which is another defeat.
A number of important DPP candidates graciously accepted defeat, and DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) announced that he will resign to take responsibility. All of this is good democratic behavior, but as for the results of its self-assessment, we'll have to wait and see.
The DPP is a democratic party that is based on a strong Taiwanese identity, and as such I have some suggestions for its future:
Listen to opinion from all levels of the party. The aim is to unify the party and strengthen its ability at self-examination rather than push blame onto others.
Put the interests of Taiwan ahead of those of individuals or party factions. A reshuffle that does not take account of personal connections is important to the rebirth of the party.
Implement reforms that benefit the people and establish a practical schedule. Power must be used to push forward reforms and establish mechanisms to prevent the abuse of power.
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) resigned from his position as DPP chairman in order to separate party and state, but that has not been achieved. Pursuing reforms in government and the party, cooperation and division of labor between party and government could be useful.
The DPP's biggest defeat did not come when former KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong visited China, but it followed Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) assuming of the KMT chairmanship, indicating that the public does not really want the government to relax cross-strait policy. The fact that Ma did not invite Lien to the celebrations of the 111th anniversary of the KMT is also a clear indication of his wish to distance himself from Lien's pro-China policy.
The DPP should not misinterpret the message and open the floodgates to China, but rather it should focus on the issue of effective management.
When it has done all this, it should look toward upcoming elections, especially the 2008 presidential poll, determine to follow the will of the people rather than use political tactics when deploying its forces and making its nominations.
Paul Lin is a commentator based in New York.
Translated by Ian Bartholomew
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