Statement of KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung

KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung’s Statement to the KMT Central Standing Committee Following the Legislative Elections (Full Text)

January 17, 2008

1.The KMT sealed a landslide victory in last Saturday’s legislative elections, securing two thirds of the seats (81 out of 113) in the new Legislature. We will not let the success go to our heads, and will remain humble and grateful in the face of the people’s mandate and expectations. We realize that the KMT’s future is in the hands of the people. It was exactly the people who deprived the KMT of ruling power 8 years ago. Back then, the opposition DPP succeeded in thwarting the KMT by branding the KMT government “Black and Gold Regime.” We must always bear in mind the painful lessons in the past, and be prudent in words and deeds now that we are the majority in the Legislature. We must remember how the DPP got punished in the legislative elections. The people were using their votes to chastise the Chen Shui-bian administration for corruption and malfeasance, and voice their disgust with the DPP that has totally failed and betrayed the people. Some believe that the majority of voters supported the KMT simply because it is relatively better compared to the DPP, not because the KMT has improved a lot in the past 8 years. We must explore the meaning of this and always reflect upon ourselves.

2.We have another battle to fight in two months, the Presidential election, which will present an even greater challenge than the legislative elections. The DPP, seeing the one-party dominance in the Legislature, is already spreading horror stories of the KMT legislative caucus becoming a giant monster out of the control of the people. This is a vicious attempt to mislead the people in order to trigger up a pendulum effect in the March 22 Presidential election. We must speak up to clarify the matters, and not let the DPP have its way. First of all, the idea of a “giant monster” in the Legislature in a democratic system is sheer absurdity. In a democratic country, the power of the government is given by the people. Political parties secure legitimate ruling power by winning either the Presidency or legislative majority through elections, which are conducted on a regular basis. Voters alone shall decide the vote share and Legislature seats secured by any single political party. The selfish DPP government is to blame for creating a minority government and showing no respect at all for the legislative majority. The ruthless DPP government turned its back on rational coordination between ruling and opposition parties, and stood in the way of cooperation between the Executive Yuan and the Legislature. We may recall the situation in the previous two legislative elections. Back then, the DPP raised the idea of “complete ruling party,” which in the DPP’s definition means the DPP should be given complete control over the Presidency, the Executive Yuan, and the Legislature, and therefore assume full responsibility for the government’s performance. Now that the KMT has secured a majority in the Legislature, it is only one step away from realizing the complete ruling party envisioned by the DPP. This will lift Taiwan out of the eight-year political impasse caused by a minority ruling party and a majority opposition party, and save Taiwan from further degradation.

3.Now that we have secured the popular mandate, we must rise to the challenge. The people have given us a majority in the Legislature, now we must urge the people to support the KMT Ma Ying-jeou-Vincent Siew Presidential ticket. We can say with confidence that if the Ma-Siew ticket is elected, the people will be blessed with not only a stable Legislature but also an efficient government. The KMT provides the people with an alternative choice of development path different from the one proposed by the DPP. We promise that, if given ruling power, we will seek to replace strife and discord with unity and harmony. We will give priority to economic development over political issues. We will replace closed-door policies with opening-up policies. We will push for peace and stability in cross-Strait relations and adopt flexible diplomacy on the premise that Taiwan’s security must not be compromised, instead of resorting to provocation all the time and losing foreign allies to Mainland China. Executive and legislative powers are to a country what wheels are to a car or wings to a bird. Smooth collaboration between the two is required for Taiwan to rise and create an economic miracle for the second time. We believe that a government must be competent in order to be responsible, and that a government needs a popular mandate to be efficient and beneficial to the people.

4.To fulfill the aforementioned promises, the KMT legislative caucus will push for the passage of sunshine bills and other bills related to the economy and bread-and-butter issues. The KMT will also strengthen the function of agencies responsible for cracking down on corruption and malfeasance, and promote clean government in compliance with the people’s expectations and rebuild the images of the government and the Legislature.

5.Finally, the KMT will open up to all forms of oversight. In addition to the traditional oversight mechanism in the five-power Constitutional framework, the media and opinion circles are another two powerful forces in overseeing the performance of the Legislature and the government. The KMT will expand the scope of its Clean Government Committee to include more people of honor and integrity to evaluate the performance of all KMT members in government.

6.It is natural that after the legislative elections, all eyes are now on the KMT. The new seventh Legislature will hit the road soon. The performance of KMT lawmakers will be under close scrutiny. The KMT party central fully expects that all KMT lawmakers-elect abide by the Integrity in Politics Code they agreed to before the legislative elections and that each lawmaker shall be a role model for fellow lawmakers in order to push for Legislature reform and refresh the Legislature’s image. Decent performance of KMT lawmakers will give the KMT a solid foundation in the forthcoming Presidential election. We must unite and work hard together to seal the final victory.

7.On behalf of the KMT, I would like to appeal to the people to give the KMT a chance to rule, to do the job that the ruling DPP has so utterly failed. If given ruling power, we would assume full responsibility for the government’s performance. We shall willingly accept another turnover of ruling parties and step down after four years if we fail to meet the people’s expectations. Any government that failed the people must step down and be replaced. This is the spirit of democracy we believe in.

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