Former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Chen Che-nan (陳哲男) was formally expelled from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday because of his alleged involvement in the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp (KRTC) scandal, in a resolution passed by the DPP's central evaluation committee.
The chief of the DPP's central evaluation committee Gao Jyh-peng (
Blackened image
Gao pointed out that although the KRTC scandal is still under investigation, Chen Che-nan's repeated evasions, his gambling trip to Korea and travel without requesting leave have all seriously damaged the DPP's reputation.
Gao compared Chen's conduct to the misleading statements of People First Party Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜).
"It is was virtually the same as when Soong [told] the public that he did not have houses in Hawaii, when it turned out that he owned five houses in LA," Gao said.
On Oct.13, Chen Che-nan said that he had never been to Incheon in South Korea. But then a picture was made public during a talk show on the television station TVBS showing him and former KRTC vice chairman Chen Min-hsien (陳敏賢) in a casino in South Korea's Cheju Island in 2002.
Five-year break
Although Chen Che-nan himself said that he would withdraw from the DPP on Friday night, Gao said that the procedure of Chen Che-nan's withdrawal from the DPP was not so simple, because the DPP must also receive related documents such as a member's party card.
According to DPP regulations, people who quit the party cannot rejoin for two years. Those like Chen Che-nan who are expelled by the party's central evaluation committee are barred from the party for five years.
"The DPP considers that Chen [Che-nan]'s withdrawal from the party would not completely enforce DPP party discipline and satisfy the public," Gao said. "Therefore, the central evaluation committee passed the resolution made by the provisional central standing committee held Saturday night, and expelled him from the DPP."
Enforcing discipline
Gao pointed out that the DPP is determined to protect the party's image and implement party discipline. Chen Che-nan's expulsion was considered necessary as he has already critically hurt the DPP's reputation.
"I would also like to apologize to our supporters and promise on the DPP's behalf that we will take action and request other members to follow the highest standards in order to defend the DPP's name," he said.
The DPP will also conduct a revision of party discipline and push high moral standards for members to protect the party's image, Gao added.
Responding to the DPP's decision on Chen Che-nan, Vice President Annette Lu (
Lu made the remarks in Tainan County, where she joined election campaign activities to promote her DPP party comrade, incumbent Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (
Meanwhile, opposition legislators yesterday urged the Presidential Office to take back medals awarded to Chen Che-nan.
At a press conference held yesterday by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative caucus, legislators said Chen Che-nan did not deserve to keep his awards. President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) conferred two orders upon Chen Che-nan.
One was a second-class medal of the Order of the Brilliant Star (景星勳章) in 2002 and the other, which is a higher honor, was the Order of Propitious Clouds (卿雲勳章) last year.
"We believe that president Chen has abused such honorable medals to please his comrades in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)," KMT caucus whip Pan Wei-kang (
ESCALATING TENSIONS: The US called for restraint and meaningful dialogue after Beijing threatened Taiwanese independence advocates with the death sentence The US on Monday condemned China’s “escalatory and destabilizing language and actions” toward Taiwan after Beijing last week announced new guidelines to punish supporters of Taiwanese independence. Asked about the guidelines, which included the death sentence for “diehard” independence advocates, US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller said: “We strongly condemn the escalatory and destabilizing language and actions from PRC [People’s Republic of China] officials.” “We continue to urge restraint and no unilateral change to the status quo,” he said at the press briefing. The US urges China to “engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan,” Miller said, adding that “threats and legal
DEATH THREAT: A MAC official said that it has urged Beijing to avoid creating barriers that would impede exchanges across the Strait, but it continues to do so People should avoid unnecessary travel to China after Beijing issued 22 guidelines allowing its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death “Taiwan independence separatists,” the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday as it raised its travel alert for China, including Hong Kong and Macau, to “orange.” The guidelines published last week “severely threaten the personal safety of Taiwanese traveling to China, Hong Kong and Macau,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a news conference in Taipei. “Following a comprehensive assessment, the government considers it necessary to elevate the travel alert to orange from yellow,” Liang said. Beijing has
WATER CONCERNS: The CWA encouraged people to conserve water, as fewer typhoons would bring less rain, and the plum rain season brought in only 60% of average rainfall About two to four typhoons are forecast to come close to Taiwan between now and November, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, as it also forecast that extreme heat would persist throughout the week, only dropping by 1°C after Friday. The number of typhoons is slightly lower than the average of three to five, reflecting a weakening El Nino weather pattern and the possibility of a La Nina pattern approaching, CWA Weather Forecast Center Director Chen Yi-liang (陳怡良) told a news conference in Taipei. While typically fewer typhoons develop under such conditions, their routes would be more likely to pass near
Taiwan and the US should invest in low-cost, long-range drones to be deployed en masse in the event of a Taiwan-China military conflict, a US think tank said in a recent report. In a report titled “Swarms over the Strait: Drone Warfare in a Future Fight to Defend Taiwan,” released on Thursday last week, Washington-based think tank the Center for a New American Security said a diversified fleet of drones could help stave off a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. “The United States needs a diverse fleet of aerial drones that includes a mix of higher-end and cheaper systems,” the report said. That mix