It may be a cliche, but the maxim that "power corrupts" is something that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration needs to take to heart before it disappoints the public any further.
The recent behavior of the party's legislators serves to illustrate this point. DPP Legislator Tu Wen-ching (
The story goes that when Tu and his friends returned to Taiwan on Dec. 19, one member of the group brought with him 20 boxes of cigarettes. According to customs laws, travelers are allowed to bring 200 cigarettes (one carton) into the country duty free, and must pay NT$3,240 to bring in four additional cartons. Any cigarettes beyond that amount would be seized by the authorities.
Accordingly, the customs official refused to allow the lawmaker's friend to bring more than the maximum allowable number of cigarettes into the country, and both Tu and his friend were obliged to undergo a customs inspection.
Last week, insisting that he wanted to "clarify" the matter, Tu persuaded the chairperson of the Finance Committee to summon the customs official, Lin Chiu-tung (
During the meeting, Tu gesticulated at a bag he said was the same he had with him when the incident occurred, and pulling items -- including a pair of underpants -- from the bag, he shouted: "Didn't you know who I was? I showed you my name card and told you that legislators would not engage in smuggling of goods. Didn't you get it?"
It was disgraceful and unprofessional enough that Tu brought his personal matters into the legislative committee meeting, where supposedly only public affairs should be discussed. But there's more.
Five other DPP legislators -- Lu Po-chi (
Lin, who not surprisingly appeared rather shocked at being publicly humiliated by people of "higher" rank than him for doing nothing more than his job, could mutter only "God bless you" before gaining the composure to answer the questions being fired at him.
While DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun moved quickly to limit the damage from the incident by calling for his party's caucus to discipline Tu and for Tu to offer a public apology, the incident nevertheless allowed the public to glimpse the ugly culture of privilege that has taken root within the DPP. This is even more regrettable considering that the party used to criticize the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) for the very same thing.
The DPP needs to be reminded that everyone is equal before the law, whether they are legislators or not.
While Lin deserves kudos for doing his job, legislators like Tu who abuse their position should be denounced and disciplined.
Minister of the Interior Lee Yi-yang (
Yet higher-ranking officials at the recent Finance Committee meeting, such as Minister of Finance Joseph Lyu (
As the premier wisely put it during a recent interview with a TV news station, "the DPP's biggest enemy is itself."
The DPP government would do well to grasp this reality sooner rather than later.
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