The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) stolen assets have long been a subject of public criticism, but the KMT is so impervious to criticism that it has never dealt with the issue.
During his first stint as KMT chairman, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) promised he would settle the dispute over the party’s ill-gotten assets. More than two years have passed since that pledge and the issue remains unresolved.
With Ma soon to take up the KMT chairmanship again, the public will see whether he pursues his promise. No one in the KMT has mentioned it, but Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺), who is not a KMT member, said in an interview that Ma should steel himself to settle the party assets issue. As party members have entrusted him through the election with party matters, this is the best time for Ma to deal with the assets.
Jiang’s suggestion was forceful and impressive. He is an exception in today’s political scene: a member of a new generation of pro-localization elites. He received his doctorate in political science from Yale University and is a professor of political science at National Taiwan University. He has no past connections to Ma, nor is he a KMT member.
During his term as minister of the Research, Development and Evaluation Commission, his performance was praised by Ma and former premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄).
In particular, Jiang won Ma’s regard when he made clear that he would stand by Liu come what may. In the Cabinet reshuffle, Jiang became interior minister.
What is most interesting is that before Jiang joined the Cabinet, he set up three principles for himself: not to join a political party, not to stump for electoral candidates and not to be persuaded to stay after deciding to leave a position. When he took over as interior minister, he reiterated these principles, with Ma saying he would respect them.
Since Taiwan was ruled by a one-party state for decades, there was no distinction between the state treasury and KMT treasury. Jiang said the KMT’s assets are not a legal problem but a political one and that they should be cut to the minimum required for the party’s basic operations. The rest should be donated to the country or to non-profit organizations, he said.
Jiang has the courage to say what he thinks and his views on the KMT’s assets hold water.
We do not know if Ma will heed this jarring advice, but Jiang has set a good example for other elected officials.
Lu I-ming is the former publisher and president of Taiwan Shin Sheng Daily News.
TRANSLATED BY TED YANG
In an article published in Newsweek on Monday last week, President William Lai (賴清德) challenged China to retake territories it lost to Russia in the 19th century rather than invade Taiwan. “If it is really for the sake of territorial integrity, why doesn’t China take back Russia?” Lai asked, referring to territories lost in 1858 and 1860. The territories once made up the two flanks of northern Manchuria. Once ceded to Russia, they became part of the Russian far east. Claims since then have been made that China and Russia settled the disputes in the 1990s through the 2000s and that “China
China has successfully held its Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, with 53 of 55 countries from the African Union (AU) participating. The two countries that did not participate were Eswatini and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which have no diplomatic relations with China. Twenty-four leaders were reported to have participated. Despite African countries complaining about summit fatigue, with recent summits held with Russia, Italy, South Korea, the US and Indonesia, as well as Japan next month, they still turned up in large numbers in Beijing. China’s ability to attract most of the African leaders to a summit demonstrates that it is still being
Trips to the Kenting Peninsula in Pingtung County have dredged up a lot of public debate and furor, with many complaints about how expensive and unreasonable lodging is. Some people even call it a tourist “butchering ground.” Many local business owners stake claims to beach areas by setting up parasols and driving away people who do not rent them. The managing authority for the area — Kenting National Park — has long ignored the issue. Ultimately, this has affected the willingness of domestic travelers to go there, causing tourist numbers to plummet. In 2008, Taiwan opened the door to Chinese tourists and in
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) on Thursday was handcuffed and escorted by police to the Taipei Detention Center, after the Taipei District Court ordered that he be detained and held incommunicado for suspected corruption during his tenure as Taipei mayor. The ruling reversed an earlier decision by the same court on Monday last week that ordered Ko’s release without bail. That decision was appealed by prosecutors on Wednesday, leading the High Court to conclude that Ko had been “actively involved” in the alleged corruption and it ordered the district court to hold a second detention hearing. Video clips