20131016 DPP says no-confidence motion failure not a setback
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DPP says no-confidence motion failure not a setback

By Chris Wang / Staff reporter


Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Su Tseng-chang speaks at a press conference at the party’s Taipei headquarters yesterday after a no-confidence motion against the Cabinet failed.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times


The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday denied the failure of its no-confidence motion against Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) was a setback and vowed to continue to work with others to bring down President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration.

“The vetoed proposal was neither a failure of the DPP nor a failure of the people because the result of the vote did not reflect the true voice of the people,” DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) told an afternoon press conference.

The motion failed in the morning vote 67 to 45.

Polls showed that more than 70 percent of the public consider Ma and Jiang incompetent, and more than half said they supported the no-confidence motion, but KMT lawmakers “chose to be the people’s enemy,” Su said.

He said the DPP would cooperate with the “social forces” to break the Ma administration, but did not say if he was hinting at a possible recall campaign against Ma.

At a separate press conference at the legislature, DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said the party would begin an indefinite boycott of interparty negotiations.

“KMT lawmakers have become kamikaze pilots on a suicidal mission after they decided to support Ma and Jiang,” Ker said. “From now on it will be the Taiwanese people going up against Ma Ying-jeou.”

However, DPP lawmakers failed to reach a consensus in two lengthy closed-door meetings after the no-confidence motion failed over whether the party should stop boycotting Jiang’s scheduled policy report to the legislature on Friday, according to a DPP lawmaker, who wished to be anonymous because she was not authorized to speak about the meetings.

Several DPP lawmakers reportedly blasted DPP headquarters over a lack of communication with the caucus, she said.

The DPP has boycotted Jiang’s report six times since the legislative session began on Sept. 17, demanding that he apologize to the legislature for what it said was his show of contempt for it and conspiring with Ma against Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平).

Asked if the party would keep boycotting Jiang, Ker said: “You will see.”

Several DPP lawmakers complained that the party had initiated the no-confidence proposal too late and asked why Su surprised everyone — including DPP members — when he said the DPP would propose a no-confidence motion “within two weeks,” which limited its strategic options and flexibility, said another legislator, who also wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the issue.

“There have been too many things going on at the headquarters that we did not know about. Coordination in the caucus has also been much less than satisfactory as opinions of fellow lawmakers varied,” the lawmaker said.

Some DPP lawmakers had opposed the no-confidence proposal, the legislator said.

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