Goodbye, Ah Bian!

The recent news of the detention of former Republic of China President Chen Shui-bian is bittersweet. On the one hand, I am happy to see that his prosecution is finally making progress despite the antics his wife and him played over the past two years. On the other hand, it shows that graft still plagues the highest office of the Republic of China, transitioning between different parties is not smooth, and that the deep resentment of the DPP has not eased a bit in the past 8 years.

Inmate 2630, as former President Chen is now known as, is putting on a great show. First, he predicts his detention before his 6-hour hearing. Second, he proudly displays his handcuffs to the media waiting outside the courthouse and yells political slogans supporting Taiwan independence. Meanwhile, he has repeatedly stated that he is a victim of political persecution. He claims that the KMT government is only doing this to appease the Communist officials in Beijing for the protests over the visit of ARATS representative Chen Yunlin last week. This is an absurd claim, because the investigation into his family's misuse of state funds goes back to 2006, way before the KMT came back into power. However, as president at the time, ROC law prohibited putting him on trial. Thus the courts could not legally investigate him until after he stepped down as president. Lastly, he further emphasizes the KMT's persecution by not eating anything while in prison. If his health deteriorates enough, he will not be able to stand trial, thus prolonging the inevitable verdict.

Calling this childish behavior would be an understatement. This is just plain idiocy. Inmate 2630 is not only an embarrassment to the DPP and Taiwan, but the Republic of China. He is the second elected president of the ROC and he shows that his politics is no better than those of General Chiang Kai-shek; both used their power for unfettered personal gain. I hope that when you sit in your jail cell, Inmate 2630, you think about the failure you have been as the leader of our country.

There should never have been nor should there be any place in our government for corruption, regardless of which party you belong. The DPP needs to stop the senseless protests, the police need to stop brutalizing citizens of the ROC, and the KMT needs to work with the DPP to investigate all allegations of graft in the current government as part of its domestic policy. We need to continue dialogue with the Mainland, although we should never invite another Communist to the province of Taiwan. The DPP has not only stalled dialogue for 8 years but has in fact moved cross-strait relations backwards in the past decade.

The KMT under the Ma Administration needs to show that we take the high road and have the interests of the 23 million Chinese citizens living in the Taiwan Province above all else.

The Republic of China is the one and only China and don't you ever forget that.