Brian Hioeby Brian Hioe
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Photo Credit: KMT/Facebook
THE KMT HAS passed a 44.2 billion NT six-year budget for drone funding, as well as 19.2 billion NT in procurement for Executive Yuan agencies. This takes place as part of the passage of the overall budget of 2.9869 trillion NT, which was held up for 266 days.
This is a reversal for the KMT, which shortly before planned to cut all such funding or to freeze it. Nevertheless, the KMT’s approval of drone funding places this under the central government budget, rather than as a special budget.
The KMT seemed to have suddenly become aware of the poor optics of blocking drone spending after an article in The Economist, which lashed out at the KMT as obstructionist and self-interested for continuing to block drone spending when this could be vital to Taiwan’s defense against Chinese threats. Afterward, the KMT legislative caucus suddenly had a reversal of course.
Splits in the KMT are increasingly visible. KMT Legislative Yuan president Han Kuo-yu recently lashed out at KMT legislative caucus leader Fu Kun-chi for failing to appear at cross-party negotiations about the budget, and not authorizing his deputy, Lin Pei-hsiang, to conduct negotiations on their behalf. Han suggested that Fu could resign as caucus chair if he continued to stymie budget discussions. Han may be aiming to differentiate his political stance from Fu, with some suspecting that Han may have his eyes on running again for president in 2028–this time as a moderate, in contrast to Fu and KMT chair Cheng Li-wun.
Yet it is possible that the KMT does not actually intend to change course on drone funding, just to present the optics of having changed course. For one, while Han criticized Fu publicly, as Legislative Yuan president or as a high-ranking KMT official, he could have taken more severe measures against Fu intended to force compliance. Han’s actions may only be for show. It is to be seen whether efforts to stymie drone programs later take place, as there are other means of accomplishing this. The KMT does not have any good explanation as to why they held up the drone budget for so long before changing abruptly on the matter.
In the meantime, yesterday the KMT also pushed through three referendums: on nuclear energy, caning, and using traffic fines as budget for road safety improvements by local governments. A referendum on the issue of euthanasia proposed by the TPP was rejected, on the basis of lack of adequate social discussion or consensus on the issue–probably not incorrect, seeing as the idea was proposed late by the TPP. It is unknown how relations between the two parties stand after splitting on the issue, though it was never a core issue for the TPP, and one introduced late as a means of having a distinctive campaign platform.
With regard to a referendum on nuclear energy, calling for the abolishment of policies for a nuclear-free homeland, the KMT would again be attempting to leverage on a traditional partisan issue with its base. That being said, the Lai administration has already reversed course on the issue of nuclear restarts, submitting plans for the restart of two reactors, which might undercut the KMT.
As for the referendum on caning, caning is proposed by the KMT as punishment for severe crimes such as sexual assault, large-scale fraud, and child abuse. The referendum is likely to be mocked now that there is more widespread discussion of the idea. Still, one notes that though KMT chair Cheng Li-wun seemed to be in favor of dropping the idea, this met with pushback within the KMT, and it remained on the ballot. Even as drones may be vital for Taiwan’s future in the face of threats, the KMT remained more consistently committed to the idea of a caning referendum.