A new Cabinet committee tasked with settling illegal political party assets is set to begin work on August 31.
The committee is being set up as the government seeks to control the kind of assets political parties can hold. In July, the legislature passed a law stating that assets obtained by political parties after 1945 are illegal and must be returned to the state. This does not include party membership fees and political donations. The KMT has protested against the law, which it says in unconstitutional.
Committee chairman Wellington Koo met Wednesday with Premier Lin Chuan to advise him on the committee’s preparations. Koo later presented a full list of committee members to reporters. Koo said that rules barring lawmakers and those actively holding party posts had made the selection of committee members a challenge. The final list includes lawyers, a historian, an accountant, and a former KMT spokesperson.
Koo said that he hopes to meet with KMT leaders once the committee has gathered information about their party’s assets.