Collaboration between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and its ally the People First Party (PFP) has always been welcomed by the KMT, but a merger of the two should happen naturally, a KMT legislative whip said yesterday.
With the nation's political landscape after Saturday's local government elections having changed drastically -- in favor of the pan-blue alliance led by the KMT -- cooperation between the KMT and the PFP at the Legislative Yuan has become even more pressing, as the pan-blue camp now holds barely half of the seats in the legislature, said Tsai Ching-lung (
Changing dynamics
Party politics have been affected by Saturday's elections, in which the KMT swept most local posts, and the KMT will help accelerate consolidation in the pan-blue camp, which also includes the PFP and the tiny New Party, Tsai said.
Tsai said, however, that the much-talked-about KMT-PFP merger should be conducted naturally without causing any controversies that may widen rifts between the two parties further.
Meanwhile, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said he did not think an instantaneous post-election merger between the KMT and the PFP would be possible, as that many substantive problems, including personnel arrangements, would need to be tackled before consolidation became realistic.
For example, Wang said, the position of PFP Chairman James Soong (
NPSU gains leverage
Wang added that it was also imperative that the pan-blue alliance seek collaboration with the Non-Partisan Solidarity Union now that the pan-blue alliance has a "weak majority" in the legislature, as at least four KMT legislators were elected as local government heads.
The Non-Partisan Solidarity Union holds eight seats in the legislature.
Meanwhile, Hwang Yih-jiau (
Prior to Saturday's elections, Soong had said that he would go overseas for a while if PFP candidate Liu Wen-hsiung (
Meeting with Soong
Hwang yesterday said Soong would delay going abroad for a potential meeting with Ma before the Lunar New Year.
The PFP will definitely give its supporters a "responsible" answer prior to the Lunar New Year regarding a KMT-PFP merger, Huang said.
Huang denied news reports that some members of the PFP legislative caucus are seeking to return to the KMT fold after the elections.
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