President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday began a series of intensive meetings with Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers, as he sought to heal the rift caused by the party’s much-criticized revocation of Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng’s (王金平) membership over allegations of illegal lobbying.
Ma and Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) both appealed for “party unity,” urging lawmakers “to refrain from giving the Democratic Progressive Party [DPP] an opportunity that it can take advantage of,” KMT Policy Committee chief executive Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) said after a meeting.
The meeting between KMT government officials and lawmakers was held yesterday afternoon to consolidate the party’s position on various issues that will be tackled when the new legislative session starts today.
In a departure from past practice, Wang was not invited to the meeting. The KMT said this was because his party membership has been rescinded — although the Taipei District Court has granted Wang’s injunction against the party’s move to revoke his membership and invalidate his status as head of the legislature.
About 50 lawmakers — out of the total 63 — showed up for the meeting, but a number of them just signed in and left. Only 10 spoke out unbidden at the meeting.
KMT Legislator Lin Te-fu (林德福) said Ma dismissed conspiracy theories that he went after Wang because of a plot seeking his ouster and rebutted criticism characterizing the incident as a political struggle between Wang and him.
Despite divisions among KMT lawmakers over the case, there was a consensus that “the KMT caucus would continue its support for President Ma” while showing their “respect for Speaker Wang,” Lin Te-fu said.
A number of KMT lawmakers close to Wang — including Wong Chung-chun (翁重鈞), Wang Hui-mei (王惠美), Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) and Lu Chia-chen (盧嘉辰), who all showed up at the airport on Tuesday last week to greet Wang on his return from an overseas trip to Malaysia where he attended his daughter’s wedding — were absent from the meeting.
Ma also began to hold small group discussions with KMT lawmakers last night, Presidential Office spokesperson Li Chia-fei (李佳霏) said.
The 63 KMT lawmakers were divided into seven groups to have dinner with Ma beginning last night to seek their views on the Wang issue, Li said.
WHEELING AND DEALING? Hou You-yi, Ko Wen-je, Eric Chu and Ma Ying-jeou are under investigation for allegedly offering bribes for the other side to drop out of the race Taipei prosecutors have started an investigation into allegations that four top politicians involved in attempts to form a “blue-white” presidential ticket have contravened election regulations. Listed as defendants are Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the KMT and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). The case stemmed from judicial complaints filed last month with the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office alleging that the KMT (blue) and the TPP (white) had engaged in bribery by offering money or other enticements
COUNTER DISINFORMATION: More engagement and media literacy are needed to push back against misinformation and claims that the US is an unreliable partner, the AIT director said The US is “confident” that Taiwan does not face an imminent threat of a Chinese invasion, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Sandra Oudkirk told a US public radio show, adding that Washington remains committed to defensively arming the nation. She made the comment during an interview on All Things Considered, broadcast on Friday on US-based National Public Radio. “There is an important distinction between making plans and training troops, and getting ready to do something,” Oudkirk said, on whether she thinks Beijing plans to attack Taiwan in the near future. Chinese officials have told Washington that “their preference is for peaceful reunification,
EXPOSED: Some Taipei wardens reported joining the trips out of peer pressure, while others said they were relieved it was made public so they could refuse, a city councilor said Nearly 30 percent of Taipei borough wardens have joined group tours to China that were partially funded by the Chinese government, leading prosecutors probing potential Chinese interference in January’s elections to question local officials, an investigation showed. Democratic Progressive Party Taipei City councilors Chien Shu-pei (簡舒培) and Chen E-jun (陳怡君) have reported cases of Taipei borough wardens inviting residents to join inexpensive privately organized group tours to China that were partially funded by the Chinese government. The six-day trips reportedly cost NT$10,000 to NT$15,000, the councilors said. An investigation by the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) showed that nearly 30 percent
ELIGIBLE FOR JANUARY: All presidential candidates and their running mates meet the requirements to run for office, and none hold dual citizenship, the CEC said Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator and vice presidential candidate Cynthia Wu (吳欣盈) is working with the Central Election Commission (CEC) to resolve issues with her financial disclosure statement, a spokesman for the candidate said yesterday, after the commission published the statements of all three presidential candidates and their running mates, while confirming their eligibility to run in the Jan. 13 election. Wu’s office spokesman, Chen Yu-cheng (陳宥丞), said the candidate encountered unforeseen difficulties disclosing her husband’s finances due to being suddenly thrust into the campaign. She is also the first vice presidential nominee to have a foreign spouse, complicating the reporting of
RSS