Concede defeat in poll: KMT young Turks

“Conceding defeat means pressure on President Chen Shui-bian; conceding defeat means power to the KMT,” the group, who called themselves the “Blue Eagles,” said in a statement at a news conference.

The young Turks are members of a class KMT Chairman Lien Chan started arranging regularly three years ago to train the party’s young elite.

Leaders of the Blue Eagles, totaling more than 20 members from the present elite class, include Chiu Teh-hung, son of Miaoli County Council Vice Speaker Chiu Shao-chun; and Wu Chih-yang, son of KMT Vice Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung.

The Blue Eagles said the KMT has been carried away by the election disputes, ignoring the need for reform.

They said even if the KMT won its legal battle to annul President Chen’s re-election, it would not erase the party’s incompetence in managing the campaign.

“The KMT must face the reality, admitting that there were faults in the management of the campaign, so that we can have the courage for reform,” said Chiu Teh-hung. “Unless we admit the faults, reform will be impossible.”

“But so far we can only see infighting among the party leaders, not their determination to let reform take root. The fact that the campaign was poorly managed wouldn’t be changed by the nullification of the election,” he said.

He said reform can’t wait until the election disputes are all settled.

The group said they hope the party can be all out reforming itself, opening more roles to be played by the younger generation.

The KMT last week set up a special reform committee headed by Lien. Four sub-panels — led separately by the party’s six vice chairs — were formed in charge of various issues, such as mounting a comeback in the year-end legislative elections.

But the pace and scope of the reform has failed to satisfy the young Turks.

“The KMT is not doing any soul searching after the election. It is having a group that needs to be reformed to take charge of the reform,” said Chiu.

“The KMT, suffering such a heavy defeat, still fails to recruit the help of the young members,” said Chiu.

“Now the young ones are coming forward to monitor the KMT’s internal reform, and this has nothing to do with power grabbing, and it should not be read as a ‘rebellion’,” said Chiu.

Another Blue Eagles leader Kuo Chia-feng revealed that the party had tried to pressurize them from speaking out.

For a brand new start, they proposed moving the party headquarters to southern Taiwan from Taipei in what they described as “taking off the leather shoes and putting on straw shoes.”

They also called on the party to sell off all of its assets, and focus on reforming from the grassroots level.

But the KMT leadership obviously is not ready to follow their advice.

Ma Ying-jeou, a vice chairman and Taipei’s mayor, said he supports wider and quicker reform, but it is not the time to concede defeat.

KMT spokesperson Kuo Shu-chun said admitting defeat now would give the ruling Democratic Progressive Party chances to hurt the KMT.

She called on the KMT’s ranks to stay united in support of the party’s legal actions seeking to overturn the election outcome.

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