The KMT said yesterday that due to the Taiwan Solidarity Union's (TSU) lack of lawmakers, it would not invite the newly-formed party to a cross-party consultation meeting that the KMT will host in two weeks.
Participating in the meeting, which will focus on working out ways to implement agreements reached at this weekend's Economic Development Advisory Conference, will be leaders of the four major political parties -- the ruling DPP, the KMT, the People First Party and the New Party, all of which hold seats in the Legislative Yuan, said Wang Chih-kang (王志剛), director-general of the KMT's Cultural Communication Committee.
According to Wang, the TSU is being excluded because it is not yet represented in the legislature.
"The KMT does not plan to invite the TSU to attend the meeting since the TSU does not have a caucus in the Legislative Yuan," Wang said. The TSU currently has only one lawmaker.
TSU chairman Huang Chu-wen (黃主文) took umbrage at the exclusion and called on the KMT not to ignore the existence of the TSU.
"Although the TSU currently has only one lawmaker, it looks forward to expanding its seats in the legislature to 35 in the year-end legislative elections. If the KMT continues to ignore the existence of the TSU, it will be to that party's great detriment," Huang said.
Wang added that the KMT was pleased that so many of its suggestions presented at the advisory conference were accepted and that the president had given his support to a political consultation initiated by KMT Chairman Lien Chan.
New Party lawmaker Lai Shih-po (賴士葆) requested that the meeting be scheduled quickly since among the 322 conclusions reached at the conference, 43 need to be put on the agenda of the upcoming session of the legislature.
The KMT says it plans to invite President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) to the meeting.
Lai called on the president to attend the inter-party meeting, as the event represents another opportunity for the ruling and opposition camps to find common ground.
It is not clear whether President Chen will attend. A local newspaper quoted aides to Chen as saying that the president has yet to consider the matter.
KMT spokesman Wang Chih-kang (王志剛) said yesterday that the forming of a coalition government following the year-end legislative, mayoral and county commissioner elections is also a major item on the agenda of the meeting.
"The KMT's stance on the forming of a coalition government is that it has to be based on the balance of power at the legislature. The party that commands the majority of seats at the legislature should be given due respect on the matter," Wang said.
"The matter of how the coalition government is to be formed, should be open for discussion between the ruling and opposition parties," he said.
Responding to a suggestion by DPP caucus leader Tsai Huang-liang that the meeting would be more properly convened under the auspices of the president, Tsai Chia-fu of the KMT legislative caucus disagreed, saying that the largest party in the legislature -- the KMT -- should chair the conclave.
He also suggested that the meeting focus on cross-strait ties, a ceiling on government debt, tax reduction and other "crucial topics."
The KMT will invite secretaries-generals of the major political parties to meet Friday in preparation for the meeting.
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