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Dapu protests fail to
discomfort Liu in KMT election
NO FALLOUT: A series of protests over his
handling of the Dapu demolitions failed to affect how Miaoli Commissioner Liu
Cheng-hung fared in a key vote
By Mo Yan-chih / Staff reporter
Miaoli County Commissioner Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻), who has drawn criticism over
the forced demolition of four houses in the county’s Dapu Borough (大埔) for a
science park project, and another controversial politician — Keelung Mayor Chang
Tong-rong (張通榮) — were both elected as Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Central
Committee members yesterday as the party chose 210 members from 314 nominees.
Despite a growing public outcry over his handling of the Dapu demolitions, Liu
was ranked 30th out of 210 elected members with 702 votes in yesterday’s
election.
He was ranked 32nd on President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) nomination list.
Chang, who was convicted of influence peddling and interfering with police
matters after he demanded that a woman who had allegedly assaulted a policewoman
be released without charge, also made it to the list, ranking 173th with 327
votes. He ranked 34th on Ma’s nomination list.
Chang yesterday dismissed allegations that he had held dinner banquets with
Control Yuan members to avoid being impeached, and threatened to file a
defamation lawsuit against former People First Party legislator Liu Wen-hsiung
(劉文雄) for making the accusation.
The KMT yesterday declined to comment on the election of the two controversial
local government heads to the party’s Central Committee.
However, protests against Liu Cheng-hung over the Dapu demolitions continue to
be held around the nation, with Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and Premier
Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) having been confronted by students advocating for the four
Dapu families whose houses were demolished.
The top five elected Central Committee members includes KMT Legislator Huang
Chao-shun (黃昭順), Central Standing Committee member Lee Chuan-chiao (李全教), former
Taipei EasyCard Corp (悠遊卡公司) chairman Sean Lien (連勝文), Legislator Yuang
Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔) and Central Standing Committee member Ho Tsai-feng (侯彩鳳).
The 210 committee members were elected by 1,685 party delegates and there was a
93.98 percent turnout.
Lien, son of former vice president Lien Chan (連戰), was greeted by party members
yesterday morning as he cast his vote at the Taipei City Council. He remained
tight-lipped about his reported intention to stand in the Taipei mayoral
election.
Former Executive Yuan secretary-general Lin Yi-shih’s (林益世) mother-in-law, Yuan
Ching-hang (袁慶杭), was also elected, ranked 175th. Central Standing Committee
member Hsieh Kung-hung (謝坤宏), who failed in his attempt to compete with Ma in
the KMT chairmanship election, was also on the election list.
KMT delegates will elect 32 Central Standing Committee members from the Central
Committee members on Sept. 7.
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