Although the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has regulations to root out people associated with gangs from the party, in practice there are clearly shortfalls, DPP Secretary-General Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀) said on Sunday after a party member was implicated in a narcotics and fraud investigation.
Chao Chieh-yu (趙介佑) was expelled from the party on Saturday after it was alleged that he was involved in drug trafficking, racketeering, assault and kidnapping related to organized crime.
The accusations involve actions Chao allegedly took after joining the DPP in 2014.
Chao’s father, Chao Ying-kuang (趙映光), and aunt, Chao Hsin-yu (趙心瑜), have over the weekend resigned as review committee convener and executive officer of the DPP’s Taipei chapter respectively.
After calling an emergency meeting on Saturday to expel Chao Chieh-yu, Taipei chapter head Enoch Wu (吳怡農) said that the chapter would review and reform its membership process.
The DPP would investigate how Chao Chieh-yu evaded detection, despite the party’s policies to root out criminal involvement in its membership and leadership, Lin said on Sunday in response to media queries.
The issue lies in implementation, he said, adding that the party would invite local chapter heads to discuss how to close loopholes and better implement the policy.
However, taking the case as a reflection of the entire party would be taking things too far, he said.
The DPP must work hard to eliminate all criminal involvement in politics and elections, or it would affect the party’s image and governance, Lin added.
Reached for comment, DPP Legislator Lai Jui-lung (賴瑞隆) said that as a political party grows, it becomes difficult to prevent different forces from trying to gain positions of influence.
Especially after being in power for a long time, the DPP inevitably carries such baggage and has gradually come to terms with it, he added.
However, it must continue moving forward with the nation, he said, adding that it is time to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the party’s internal structure.
This would include adding more mechanisms to deal with corruption and factionalism, as well as infiltration by “unsavory forces,” he said.
The changes must be made quickly and unsuitable people expelled to meet the public’s expectations and maintain their trust in the party, Lai added.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS