Li Chen-hsiu kicked out of TPP, removed from Legislature

Taipei, April 13 (CNA) The Taiwan People's Party (TPP) voted to expel China-born lawmaker Li Chen-hsiu (李貞秀) from the party on Monday over repeated disciplinary violations, which means she will also be removed from the Legislature.

In a statement, the TPP said an investigation by its Central Review Committee found that Li had made numerous statements and actions that harmed the party's reputation and damaged party unity.

In addition to unspecified "disciplinary violations," Li showed a "disregard for public office" by telling TPP officials on April 7 that she would only resign from her seat in the Legislature in return for money, the statement said.

The decision to expel Li from the party means that she will also lose her seat in the Legislature and be replaced by National Cheng Kung University law professor Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信), the next person on the TPP's party list.

Background

Li, the first China-born naturalized Taiwan national to become a democratically elected lawmaker in Taiwan, only entered the Legislature in February as part of the TPP's two-year term rule for at-large legislators.

Her short tenure was dominated by a dispute with the government over whether she had completed the legally required process to renounce her People's Republic of China nationality.

Amid the dispute, Li carried out her duties as a lawmaker, but government officials appearing at the Legislature have refused to take questions from her on the grounds that she was not serving legally.

However, neither Li nor the government sought any kind of legal remedy for the standoff.

Her place in the TPP, however, came under scrutiny last month, when she claimed on a livestream that during oral arguments in TPP founder Ko Wen-je's (柯文哲) corruption trial, she learned that Ko had given NT$7 million (US$220,112) in party funds to Hsinchu Mayor Kao Hung-an (高虹安).

Li later apologized for the remarks, saying she had been "confused" and emotionally agitated, but was nevertheless referred for a TPP disciplinary investigation.

Asked by reporters about the party's decision on Monday, TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said at-large legislators should be able to meet the demands of their supporters and fulfill their promises to voters, rather than advocating for personal benefits.

Asked if Li had met that standard, Huang replied "no."