Ko Wen-je claims DPP suppression; Lin Chun-hsien questions TPP's KMT ties and Ko's leadership

Taiwan People's Party (TPP) founder Ko Wen-je has claimed his party is facing a nationwide suppression campaign by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which he alleges aims to eliminate the TPP and revert to a two-party system.

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The TPP has been suppressed by the DPP with the nation's strength in the past two years, its approval ratings have continuously declined, and they even want to imprison me. The DPP's primary goal is to eliminate the TPP to return to blue-green confrontation.

However, TPP legislator Lin Chun-hsien has publicly challenged Ko's narrative. Lin suggested that the TPP's declining poll numbers and struggles are not due to DPP pressure but rather its own inability to forge an independent path. He criticized the TPP for becoming a "Fu-sui organization," constantly following the Kuomintang's (KMT) lead and lacking its own political identity, effectively becoming a "knock-off" version of the KMT.

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The TPP has become a 'Fu-sui organization,' constantly being led by the nose by the KMT, and voters have clear eyes. Looking around, the TPP just seems like a 'little blue' without its own subjectivity.

Lin further questioned Ko's leadership, pointing to Ko's statement that the TPP secured 14 councilor seats in the 2022 elections because he was present. Lin interpreted this as Ko subtly criticizing party chairman Huang Kuo-chang, implying that the TPP's performance has faltered under Huang's leadership in Ko's absence. This suggests a potential internal rift within the TPP regarding its direction and leadership.

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The most hilarious thing is that Ko Wen-je said that if the TPP's seats do not increase in the year-end elections, there's no need to run next time. In the 2022 elections, because I was still around, we were able to achieve 14 councilor seats.

Ko also alleged that the DPP's goal is to prevent him from running for office and to make the TPP disappear. Lin dismissed this, stating the DPP's focus has never been on the TPP. He argued that the TPP's current value lies primarily in its negotiation leverage with the KMT, suggesting that without the KMT's willingness to engage, the TPP would have little political standing. Lin concluded that the TPP's predicament is self-inflicted, having evolved into a subordinate brand of the KMT.

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The TPP was not defeated by the DPP, but step by step, it has become its own worst enemy and an affiliated brand of the KMT. In four words: self-inflicted.