Voters Must Not Allow Politicians to Repeatedly Manipulate Them

Voters Must Not Allow Politicians to Repeatedly Manipulate Them
China Times editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
November 4, 2011

Summary: People First Party Chairman James Soong has handed a petition signed by 355,819 petitioners to the Taipei City Election Commission. It's official. James Soong is an independent presidential candidate in the 2012 election. For the KMT, James Soong has become a nightmare from which it cannot awake. Everyone must pay close attention to him, even though he is utterly unelectable. He has become the decisive factor in the presidential election, Once again, this is a test of the maturity of the island's democracy.

Full Text Below:

People First Party Chairman James Soong has handed a petition signed by 355,819 petitioners to the Taipei City Election Commission. It's official. James Soong is an independent presidential candidate in the 2012 election. For the KMT, James Soong has become a nightmare from which it cannot awake. Everyone must pay close attention to him, even though he is utterly unelectable. He has become the decisive factor in the presidential election, Once again, this is a test of the maturity of the island's democracy.

Just exactly what does James Soong want? Why is he determined to stay in the race to the bitter end? The KMT has never understood this mystery. But the answer is actually quite simple. James Soong is motivated entirely by power, Power is his only motivation. Years ago, before he became Governor of Taiwan, Lee Teng-hui gave Soong a choice of appointments, including ROC Representative to Washington and Minister of Defense. He unhesitatingly chose Governor of Taiwan. James Soong said that a "Mainlander" is currently unelectable. But if I serve as governor now, it will be easier to nominate a Mainlander candidate when elections are eventually held. Therefore he fought hard for the KMT nomination, Wu Poh-hsiung was assumed to be a shoo-in. Wu was determined to run even, if he won only in Alishan. But in the end Wu was forced to quietly withdraw.

After the Taiwan Provincial Government was frozen, James Soong and Lee Teng-hui had a falling out. Reconciliation was possible, But James Soong rejected attempts at reconciliation, and went his own way. The reason was simple. He was a popularly elected governor. He had strong public backing. Other than premier, what position was worthy of him? But Lee Teng-hui had no intention of letting him run for president. For Lee, pushing out Vincent Siew to placate James Soong was not an option. Just before Lien Chan was officially nominated, Lee sent Soong a hand-written letter, inviting Soong to be Lien's vice presidential running mate. Soong did not even bother to read the letter, but sent it back unopened.

The 2004 Lien-Soong ticket was a major turning point. The KMT tasted the bitter fruit of losing power. More importantly, Chen Shui-bian cheated both Lien Chan and James Soong, They dissolved their ticket and did not return to power. Lien and Soong were once at odds with each other. During this period however, they development a reasonably good, highly cooperative relationship. Chen Shui-bian's "Two Bullets" miracle even nurtured a degree of "side by side in the trenches" camaraderie. Yet less than a year later, James Soong arranged a "Bian/Soong Meeting," leaving the KMT stunned and betrayed. KMT Chairman Lien Chan was about to embark on his historic ice-breaking trip to the Mainland. James Soong hope to preempt Lien by visiting the Mainland as "President Chen Shui-bian official envoy."

Soong used to insist that he was not someone who yearned for a position of power. He said he was not someone who made political deals. People motivated by power can do without a position of power. But they cannot do without public attention, The "Bian/Soong Meeting" was a good example. Soong merely wanted a role in cross-Strait relations. But this is not always the case, According to a China Times Weekly WikiLeaks report, in 2006 James Soong insisted on running for Mayor of Taipei. Soong told then AIT Taipei Office Chief Stephen M. Young that Ma Ying-jeou's consultant was considering asking Hau Lung-bin to withdraw from the race. In return, Ma would promise not to run for president in 2008. Soong said that running for mayor was the same as telling the KMT he was not running for president and would not serve as the DPP government's premier. The report said union organizer Liao Feng-teh told them Ma Ying-jeou had already denied this allegation.

After his defeat in the Taipei mayoral race, James Soong announced his withdrawal from the political arena. But the Ma Ying-jeou discretionary fund controversy handed the PFP a number of bargaining chips. WikiLeaks described the 2007 KMT/PFP joint nominations for the Legislative Yuan as something the PFP accepted "only because it had no choice." People First Party Legislator Huang Yi-chiao told Stephen M. Young that the People First Party met with the DPP in advance. The PFP told the DPP that the PFP would be absent from the Legislative Yuan Ways and Means Committee session, The "Exclude Ma Clause" would make anyone found guilty in a first instance trial ineligible as a candidate. The PFP's absence enabled the DPP to make the "Exclude Ma Clause" part of the agenda. This forced the KMT to yield seats to the PFP in the legislative election.

The KMT and the PFP have often been at odds with each other. But this joint nomination strategy enabled the KMT and PFP to achieve an unprecedented victory in the 2008 legislative elections. Ma Ying-jeou also won by a landslide in the presidential election. But the KMT was barely back in power before the People First Party began demanding even more political appointments. This included appointments to the Control Yuan, which calls for the independent exercise of power, and for which appointments of a partisan political character are inappropriate. James Soong complained that Wu Po-hsiung was forced to consent, and that Ma Ying-jeou was unwilling to nominate PFP candidates to the Control Yuan.

After meeting with James Soong, Stephen M. Young remarked, "James Soong is a wily, unprincipled politician. He controls a tiny faction within the legislature (21 seats out of 221 total). Yet on major issues he is able to exercise a decisive influence. Everyone is afraid of offending Soong. Probably because he knows many of the KMT's dirty secrets. But the question is, why should Ma Ying-jeou and other Blue Camp leaders allow "this old Blue Camp tail to wag the dog?"

Stephen M. Young wonders why. The Kuomintang probably wonders why as well. Honorary KMT Chairman Lien Chan provided a pertinent answer to this question. "We have no choice. We must ally with the PFP in order to achieve a majority in the legislature." This was true back then. It appears to be true now, But who is to blame? Is Soong too adept at political manipulation? Or is the KMT simply too inept? More importantly, how long will voters on Taiwan allow politicians to lead them around by the nose?

中時電子報 新聞
中國時報 　2011.11.04
選民不應容忍政客一再操弄
本報訊

親民黨主席宋楚瑜向台北市選委會交出三十五萬五千五百八十九份連署書之後，宋楚瑜成為二○一二年總統獨立參選人已勢所必然。對國民黨而言，宋楚瑜已成為揮之不去的夢魘，這位眾人皆曰當選不了的參選人，卻成為總統選局的關鍵變數，再一次考驗台灣民主的成熟度。

宋楚瑜到底要什麼？為什麼非選到底不可？國民黨始終解不開這個謎，其實很簡單，宋楚瑜是一個徹底的權力人物，權力是他唯一的動力。當年出任省主席之前，李登輝給了他包括駐美代表、國防部長等選擇，他獨挑省主席，宋楚瑜曾說，一個外省人當省主席不可能選省長，有利於未來開放省長民選後的提名布局。結果，他強力爭取國民黨的提名，讓原以為十拿九穩，台灣只剩下阿里山也要選省長的吳伯雄黯然退讓。

凍省之後，宋楚瑜與李登輝翻臉，不是沒有機會和解，宋楚瑜拒絕安排決意走自己的路，原因也很簡單，在那個時候擁有強大民意後盾的民選省長，除行政院長還有什麼職務可以匹配？李登輝既無意讓他選總統，當時更不可能換掉蕭萬長以安撫宋楚瑜。即使如此，連戰在國民黨正式提名前，還是親筆手書信函，力邀宋楚瑜搭檔，這封信連拆都沒拆，就被宋楚瑜退回了。

二○○四年「連宋配」是一個重大轉機，國民黨痛嘗失去政權的苦果，更重要的，連戰、宋楚瑜都吃了陳水扁的虧，不合無以重返執政。在這段期間，曾經對立的連宋建立相當不錯的合作關係，甚至在兩顆子彈衝擊選情後，還有一定程度的革命感情。即使如此，一年不到宋楚瑜一場「扁宋會」，又讓國民黨錯愕不已，當時正是國民黨主席連戰準備赴大陸展開破冰之旅前夕，宋楚瑜要以「陳水扁總統授權」的身分搶得先機登陸。

宋楚瑜常說，他不是爭取職務的人，更不是談政治交易的人。權力人物可以不要位子，不能沒有角色，「扁宋會」可做如是觀，他要在兩岸關係中扮演角色。但是，也不全然如此，根據《時報周刊》報導，維基解密電文紀錄，二○○六年宋楚瑜堅持參選台北市長，他告訴時任ＡＩＴ台北辦事處長楊甦棣，馬英九的顧問不排除勸退郝龍斌，以換取他保證二○○八年不會競選總統，宋楚瑜說參選市長就是告訴國民黨他既不會選總統，也不會出任民進黨政府的行政院長。ＡＩＴ電文加註指出，組工會主任廖風德告訴他們馬英九已斷然否認這個可能。

台北市長敗選之後，宋楚瑜宣布退出政壇，但是，馬英九特別費案爆發，又讓親民黨掌握與國民黨談判的籌碼。維基解密電文用「只因不得不然」形容二○○七年五月國親立委聯合提名協議，親民黨立委黃義交坦白告訴楊甦棣，親民黨事前知會民進黨，他們會在立法院程序委員會缺席，讓一審有罪不得參選的「排馬條款」排入議程，逼迫國民黨最後同意讓出立委席次。

不論國親之間到底在多大的矛盾衝突下達成協議，這個聯合提名策略確實讓國親在二○○八年取得空前勝利，馬英九也在總統大選中高票當選。然而，國民黨才重返執政，親民黨在人事安排上又多所要求，包括獨立行使職權未必適合由政黨推薦的監委，宋楚瑜都抱怨使吳伯雄同意，馬英九都不肯提名親民黨人出任監委。

與宋楚瑜會談後的楊甦棣在電文中特別加了一段評論：「宋楚瑜是狡詐（wily）、沒有原則的政治人物，他操作小小的立院派系（總數二百二十一席中的二十一席），在重大議題中，取得關鍵影響力。人們似乎都很怕得罪宋，可能因為他懷抱著國民黨過去許多難堪的祕密。問題在於，馬英九和其他藍營領導人，到底要容許「這樣的藍營老尾巴搖狗」（this aging blue tail to wag the dog）到什麼時候？」

楊甦棣的疑問，或許也是國民黨人的疑問，這個問題國民黨榮譽主席連戰倒是很中肯的給了答案：「沒辦法，我們需要親民黨的結盟，以取得國會多數。」這個答案當年如此，此刻看來還是如此，該怪宋楚瑜太擅於權力操作？還是國民黨太拙於政治操作？更重要的，台灣選民會容忍政治人物權力操作到幾時？