During an interpellation over power outages at the Legislative Yuan last week, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) — great-grandson of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and grandson of former president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) — repeatedly demanded that Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) “guarantee” there would be no more blackouts.
Not getting a straight answer from Su, Chiang Wan-an insisted that the government have the “guts” to deliver on its promise, to which Su retorted: “Your grandfather guaranteed recapturing China, and the KMT still hasn’t done that... To fulfill your grandfather and your great-grandfather’s promise, I served in the military for two years. I was told I would be the first to set foot in mainland China and save our compatriots. What is the point of a guarantee?”
The exchange has drawn criticism from the pan-blue camp, most notably from KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) and Broadcasting Corp of China chairman Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康). While some were calling for Su to step down, others were asking for the establishment of an “anti-interpellation” rule.
While accusing Su of not daring to offer a guarantee, the KMT seems to have swept its promises and guarantees under the rug. Aside from recapturing China, the KMT promised to oppose the communists in Russia, but its promises seem to have become taboo, with none of its members willing to acknowledge them.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the KMT was initially on the fence, but after witnessing the global community unanimously side with Ukraine, it quickly switched from pro-Russia inclinations to a timid and overdue support for Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Chiang Wan-an is the KMT’s potential candidate for Taipei mayor in the election later this year.
Gentle, well-mannered and inoffensive, he has always been viewed by KMT supporters as the “party’s boy.” Since his exchange with Su, KMT heavyweights have been rushing in to “save” Chiang Wan-an, which has only enhanced his weakling image and given voters reason to question his abilities.
To transform his “gutless” image, he should display more intellect, conviction and leadership in question-and-answer sessions, instead of resorting to the goading language most used by “street ruffians.”
The KMT must have misgivings if it thought Chiang Wan-an could become “the messiah” who would lead the party into a new era. By changing his surname from Chang (章) to Chiang (蔣), he chose to embrace the Chiang dynasty. While his ancestry is gaining him wide support among Taipei’s deep-blue voters, he has so far failed to attract independent voters of the younger generation. His mediocre and fruitless performance in politics has people questioning whether he is solely relying on his birthright.
As one claiming the Chiang line, is he going to shoulder his forefathers’ promises to fight communism? Or is Chiang Wan-an going to turn into a prodigal son who mingles with pro-China cohorts? Either way, he has tough decisions ahead of him, and an even tougher future if he continues with the weak behavior.
As Chiang Wan-an’s great-grandfather and grandfather proved, a name can be more of a liability than an asset. If he really wishes to do his name and family justice, he will need to show some grit and resolve in November’s mayoral election.
Recently, the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) published three of my articles on the US presidential election, which is to be held on Nov. 5. I would like to share my perspective on the intense and stalemated presidential election with the people of Taiwan, as well as Taiwanese and Chinese Americans in the US. The current consensus of both major US political parties is to counter China and protect Taiwan. However, I do not trust former US president Donald Trump. He has questioned the US’ commitment to defending Taiwan and explicitly stated the significant challenges involved in doing so. “Trump believes
China has successfully held its Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, with 53 of 55 countries from the African Union (AU) participating. The two countries that did not participate were Eswatini and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which have no diplomatic relations with China. Twenty-four leaders were reported to have participated. Despite African countries complaining about summit fatigue, with recent summits held with Russia, Italy, South Korea, the US and Indonesia, as well as Japan next month, they still turned up in large numbers in Beijing. China’s ability to attract most of the African leaders to a summit demonstrates that it is still being
The government is considering building a semiconductor cluster in Europe, specifically in the Czech Republic, to support Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC) new fab in Dresden, Germany, and to help local companies explore new business opportunities there. Europe wants to ensure the security of its semiconductor sector, but a lack of comprehensive supply chains there could pose significant risks to semiconductor clusters. The Czech government is aggressively seeking to build its own semiconductor industry and showing strong interest in collaborating with Taiwanese companies. Executive Yuan Secretary-General Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) on Friday said that Taiwan is optimistic about building a semiconductor cluster in
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) on Thursday was handcuffed and escorted by police to the Taipei Detention Center, after the Taipei District Court ordered that he be detained and held incommunicado for suspected corruption during his tenure as Taipei mayor. The ruling reversed an earlier decision by the same court on Monday last week that ordered Ko’s release without bail. That decision was appealed by prosecutors on Wednesday, leading the High Court to conclude that Ko had been “actively involved” in the alleged corruption and it ordered the district court to hold a second detention hearing. Video clips
RSS