A sorry example of a legislature

In a future legislature where none of the three parties has an overall majority, this kind of secret negotiation process may further cripple the normal functions of the Legislative Yuan and exacerbate the rot of "black gold" politics.

In the parliaments of advanced countries, all kinds of specialized committees serve as arenas for the discussion and deliberation of motions. Even if negotiations are held between parties, it should also be done according to the principles of seniority, specialization and transparency.

In Taiwan we are doing it the other way round, neglecting not only the specialist functions of the committees (for example, using the rarely seen method of drawing lots to decide the number of committee members), but also the basic legislative principles in democratic countries of avoiding conflicts of interest, the moral principles of seniority and legislative discipline. Instead we emphasize the leadership of party negotiations and trade benefits.

When shouting "legislative power," "supervisory balance" and other slogans, it wouldn't hurt "the mighty politicians of the Legislative Yuan" [a term often used by the former speaker of the Legislative Yuan Liu Sung-pan (劉松潘)] to ask themselves why the people, who are not satisfied with the performance of the government in general, value the Legislative Yuan even less.

When the ruling and opposition parties emphasize "legislative dignity" by bringing up advanced democratic countries, it seems they choose to forget about those countries' principles of respect for specialization, avoiding conflicts of interest, the moral principles of seniority and legislative discipline.

The performance of the ruling and opposition parties this week is a clear reflection of what is wrong with the way the legislature works.

Wang Yeh-lih is a professor in the department of political science, Tung Hai University.

Translated by Perry Svensson