The TSU is poised to expand its legislative power if three KMT legislators -- who might be expelled from the KMT for voting in defiance of party orders during last week's confirmation vote -- decide to defect.
TSU lawmakers confirmed yesterday that they are negotiating with at least three KMT lawmakers, who could very likely be dismissed from the party because they ignored party directives by entering the legislative chamber to cast their votes last Thursday and Friday.
"We will approach whoever shares our political ideology because it will fulfill people's expectations if the political scene is stabilized [through the expansion of the `pan-green' camp]," said Lo Chih-ming (羅志明), a leader of the TSU's legislative caucus.
To achieve that, the KMT is not the only TSU target.
Besides KMT lawmakers Chen Ken-te (陳根德), Lin Pin-kuan (林炳坤) and Lu Shin-ming (呂新民), Lo said that the party was also in touch with independent lawmakers Kao Meng-ting (高孟定) and Hung Chao-nan (洪昭男).
Lo said Chen and Lu are long-term friends of some TSU lawmakers and Hong is known for having a close relationship with TSU chairman Huang Chu-wen (黃主文).
The TSU lawmaker said all three have expressed a willingness to join the TSU's legislative caucus if they were expelled by the KMT, but they would wait until today when the KMT announces its decision.
In a bid to reject eight high-level governmental officials appointed by the president, the KMT barred its legislators from entering the legislative chamber to boycott the vote.
The KMT said that entering the legislative chamber itself was tantamount to breaking party regulations regardless of whether the voters cast a "yes" or "no" ballot.
Ten KMT legislators run the risk of being dismissed by the party because they insisted on voting.
Yao Chia-wen (
Once ridiculed for lacking grit in dealing with members challenging the party's principle, the KMT has decided to demonstrate its resolve to reform this time by resorting to stricter punishment. It is widely believed that at least five out of the 10 will be expelled from the party.
None of the KMT lawmakers named by the TSU acknowledged that they had been in touch with the TSU about possible defection.
But Chen Ken-te told the Taipei Times that he would join any party "who makes the people's interests its top priority."
He said he isn't afraid of facing punishment because his party has gone against the public will, but he added that he thinks he did nothing wrong by exercising his right to vote for qualified candidates.
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
‘MALIGN PURPOSE’: Governments around the world conduct espionage operations, but China’s is different, as its ultimate goal is annexation, a think tank head said Taiwan is facing a growing existential threat from its own people spying for China, experts said, as the government seeks to toughen measures to stop Beijing’s infiltration efforts and deter Taiwanese turncoats. While Beijing and Taipei have been spying on each other for years, experts said that espionage posed a bigger threat to Taiwan due to the risk of a Chinese attack. Taiwan’s intelligence agency said China used “diverse channels and tactics” to infiltrate the nation’s military, government agencies and pro-China organizations. The main targets were retired and active members of the military, persuaded by money, blackmail or pro-China ideology to steal
RSS