Several Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday said they are considering withdrawing from the party or the KMT caucus over the loss of their legislative nominations or disagreement with caucus ideals.
KMT Legislator Lee Sen-zong (
"Because of our fundamental differences, either the caucus leaves or we [Lee and several other KMT legislators] leave. It is very simple," Lee said.
The Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times' sister paper) reported yesterday that at least six KMT lawmakers who failed to secure the party's nomination for next year's legislative election or who complained about unfair treatment in the primary are thinking about leaving the KMT or becoming independent from the KMT caucus.
The six legislators include Lee, Ko Chun-hsiung (柯俊雄), Chang Chang-tsair (張昌財), Chen Chao-rung (陳朝容) and Lin Cheng-feng (林正峰) the Liberty Times reported.
When asked whether he may join the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Lee said he was considering the possibility.
"If [KMT presidential candidate] Ma [Ying-jeou (馬英九)] likes us, we will stay. If he doesn't, we will say goodbye [to the KMT]," he said.
Lee skipped the KMT's primary against Wu Yu-sheng (
Lee said he would seek reelection in Tamsui, Taipei County, even though Wu is also running for a legislative post there.
When approached by reporters yesterday, Chang said he felt disillusioned by politics.
"I want to leave politics because I have seen enough of its ugly side. I am very disappointed," he said.
Chen yesterday also confirmed to the press that he is considering leaving the KMT caucus, but he dismissed media speculation that he, Ko and Chang were planning on leaving the caucus together.
Lin dismissed the Liberty Times report yesterday, while Ko was unavailable for comment.
KMT spokesman Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓) said the party valued the legislators' opinions very much, and has been trying to dissuade them from leaving the party. Su said KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) and Ma had already talked to Lee, and would continue to negotiate with him and other legislators.
"We are making a last effort to dissuade them from leaving the party, and hoping that they won't do something that will only please our opponents," Su said.
Additional reporting by Mo Yan-chih
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
China might accelerate its strategic actions toward Taiwan, the South China Sea and across the first island chain, after the US officially entered a military conflict with Iran, as Beijing would perceive Washington as incapable of fighting a two-front war, a military expert said yesterday. The US’ ongoing conflict with Iran is not merely an act of retaliation or a “delaying tactic,” but a strategic military campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and reshaping the regional order in the Middle East, said National Defense University distinguished adjunct lecturer Holmes Liao (廖宏祥), former McDonnell Douglas Aerospace representative in Taiwan. If
TO BE APPEALED: The environment ministry said coal reduction goals had to be reached within two months, which was against the principle of legitimate expectation The Taipei High Administrative Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau in its administrative litigation against the Ministry of Environment for the rescission of a NT$18 million fine (US$609,570) imposed by the bureau on the Taichung Power Plant in 2019 for alleged excess coal power generation. The bureau in November 2019 revised what it said was a “slip of the pen” in the text of the operating permit granted to the plant — which is run by Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) — in October 2017. The permit originally read: “reduce coal use by 40 percent from Jan.
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by
RSS