The Legislature has finished the third readings of amendments to the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法) and the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法). The long-awaited amendments prevent people convicted of certain crimes — such as organized crime, money laundering, gun smuggling or use, narcotics trafficking, peddling and use, and national security crimes — from running for public office.
Taiwanese should applaud the amendments, as they would help to perfect the nation’s democracy. It is undeniable that gangsters have intervened in Taiwan’s elections many times. If their harmful influence can be curbed by laws, elections can be carried out in a high-principled manner, given that Taiwanese are by nature kind and sincere.
As chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Vice President William Lai (賴清德) has demonstrated his resolution to bar those with a criminal background from representing the DPP in elections. For this, Lai gained support from the public in opinion polls. This shows what Taiwanese want: All gangsters and their affiliates eliminated from elections.
The amendments were proposed by the DPP. Given that it has a legislative majority, it was only natural that the party fully utilize its advantage and amend the law to eliminate the influence of gangsters in elections.
As Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) has said, a candidate with a criminal background should not be tolerated. The amendments are sure to go a long way to improve the quality of Taiwan’s democracy.
Particularly in local elections, political factions have been controlled by politicians who lack any originality. Their old faces and cliche slogans appear in elections on a regular basis. Some of those politicians are affiliated with gangsters and some even have criminal records.
Their participation in local elections is often supported by illicit money. When they conduct election campaigns, gangsters often manipulate the results, with rampant vote-buying. If such activities can be prevented by law, local elections can be free of corruption and wrongdoing. In this way, Taiwanese can also provide space for young people with fresh visions to realize their political dreams.
Civil servants are supposed to serve the public and the conduct of politicians should be held to an even higher standard. It is therefore perplexing that the opposition party strongly fought against the amendments.
The law should apply to all people regardless of their social status. If common people face penalty when they contravene the law, civil servants and candidates in any kind of elections should abide by the law more strictly. Given that politicians are a part of the state apparatus, they should be more attentive to the law and remain loyal to the nation.
Chen Chi-nung is principal of Kuohsing Junior High School in Nantou County.
Translated by Emma Liu
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