Taiwan New Constitution Foundation founder Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏) yesterday said he would quit as Presidential Officer adviser over the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government’s lack of progress in normalizing Taiwan as a state.
Speaking at a symposium on drafting a new constitution and normalizing Taiwan’s international relations, Koo said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has failed to make progress on the issues, despite being in office for several years.
“The government does not want to move on this. It only wants to amend the Constitution — not draft a new constitution,” he said, adding that the difference of opinion between himself and the Tsai administration meant he was left with no option but to resign.
Photo: CNA
Drafting a new constitution is the basis for normalizing Taiwan’s relations, and is supported by a majority of the public, he said.
“The public voted for you, but you remain aloof. Is it your intention to fool the public?” he said, addressing Tsai.
The nation’s future is not decided by the president, and the president must respect the wishes of the public, he said.
Koo said he is not opposed to amending the Constitution to lower the voting age to 18, but added that “making Taiwan a normal country” is a more important task.
“The greatest obstacle to the nation’s normalization is the Republic of China [ROC] Constitution,” he added.
“[Democracy pioneer] Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕) sacrificed himself for Taiwanese independence, and today as many as 90 percent of the public support normalizing the nation,” he said. “This means making a new constitution. The Republic of China Constitution is foreign.”
When Taiwan sends aid to other countries it does so using China Airlines planes, which means that it is doing so in China’s name, he said.
“Why does the government not dare to even talk about drafting a new constitution? Is it afraid of upsetting Beijing? It should be more focused on helping Taiwan gain prosperity and stability,” he said.
Koo said that he once told former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe that if Taiwan ever became part of China, Japan would become a second-tier country.
Abe shook his hand and replied that he “100 percent agreed” with him, Koo said.
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