Sun, Nov 12, 2000 page3

• Taichung municipal officials defect to DPP en masse

  • STAFF WRITER
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  Forty-five Taichung City Government officials, including two bureau directors, joined the DPP yesterday, provoking a backlash from the opposition KMT, Chinese-language media reported yesterday.

  The officials gathered for a ceremony at the Hotel National (全國飯店) in Taichung to join the government's ruling party at around 9:30am yesterday, the report said.

  Chen Wen-hsien (陳文憲), the committee chairman of the DPP's Taichung division and the husband of Taichung Mayor Chang Weng-ying (張溫鷹) both delivered speeches during the ceremony. In his speech, Chen said: "As the head of DPP's Taichung division, I am obligated to rally more party members. But I have never compelled any government officials to join the DPP." Chen added that if he were ever found to have employed unfair means to promote DPP membership, he would resign from his position and "accept the most severe punishment for transgressing party regulations."

  

  Forty-five Taichung City Government officials were welcomed into the DPP yesterday after taking an oath of allegiance to the party at the Hotel National in Taichung.

  PHOTO: TANG TSAI-HSIN, TAIPEI TIMES

  Chen claimed that while many people had left the KMT, the party had neither contemplated its own problems nor worked out a schedule to solve them. Chen said that the KMT was simply good at slandering and attacking other political parties.

  Taichung Mayor Chang also participated the DPP membership ceremony, the report said. While delivering a speech during the ceremony, Chang made clear her expectation that the new members cooperate with her so as to promote democracy and facilitate prosperity in Taiwan.

  Chen Chao-nan (陳昭南), a member of the DPP's Central Committee also presented greetings from DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) to the new party members during the ceremony.

  One of the new members, Lin Jui-hsin (林瑞欣), director of Taichung's health bureau, claimed that he used to be a KMT member but decided not to sign up during its membership renewal. Lin added that, as he sided with Chang's political reforms, he turned out yesterday to take part in the DPP ceremony. Lin stressed that, as a previous KMT member, his taking the position of director of the health bureau under Chang showed her willingness to reach across party lines in governing Taichung.

  Several new members voiced their reasons for joining with the DPP. Chen Pang-yen (陳邦彥), director of Taichung City's social affairs bureau, corroborated Lin's view by saying that the DPP was a strong political party that corresponded more closely to his own social stance, according to the report. Chiang Shih-hsien (江世賢) said he found himself siding more with Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) policies during the presidential election and so decided to join the party. "I already decided to join DPP late last year," Chiang added.

  Yesterday's mass induction ceremony incited the suspicions of Mu Kuei-hsin (沐桂新), the committee chairman of the KMT's Taichung City division, the report said. Mu pointed out that the DPP's manipulation of city government officials in a bid to promote its own party image had trivialized the dignity of civil servants throughout Taiwan.
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