Quoting former deputy legislative speaker Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤), who once said “the legislature is not a factory where bills get passed automatically,” Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) yesterday called for more discussion and communication within the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) on reaching consensus on proposed bills.
Wang made the remarks at a lunch gathering organized by KMT Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) that was aimed at seeking consensus among KMT lawmakers and the executive branch on the party’s latest revision of its proposed amendment to the Local Government Act (地方制度法).
The amendment initially proposed by the KMT caucus failed to pass the legislature because of objections from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers on Tuesday, the last day of the legislative session. DPP lawmakers accused the KMT of trying to retain township heads as paid district chiefs after five special municipalities are formed at the end of this year. They alleged the KMT was trying to use the proposal to win grassroots support in local elections.
Wang and President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) were at odds on Wednesday on the need for a provisional legislative session. Ma, who doubles as KMT chairman, urged the KMT caucus to hold a provisional session to approve the amendment, while Wang said he did not see the need for an extra session. The next day Wang said Ma did not inform him before telling the KMT caucus to push for an extra session.
The KMT yesterday presented a revised version of its proposed amendment canceling the NT$45,000 monthly salary for township councilors who would be reappointed as advisers to district chiefs for four more years after the municipalities are formed.
The KMT proposal also set thresholds for township chiefs and city mayors to be appointed as district directors. Township chiefs who have served two terms or have been convicted for treason, tax evasion or corruption would be disqualified.
“We are confident that the final version will meet public expectations ... The public will have their judgment if the DPP still opposes the version and creates confrontations intentionally,” King said.
Wang said he would support the KMT caucus’ latest revision as long as it was deliberated thoroughly within the party in advance.
King accused DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of “turning a blind eye” to the fact that Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (蘇煥智) of the DPP also proposed giving a monthly salary to the advisers.
“I urge the opposition party to handle the proposed amendment rationally, and follow the procedures to negotiate the contents if they do not agree, rather than boycotting the case,” King said.
The DPP said it still opposed the KMT’s proposed amendments.
“We still oppose such a proposal because that could lead to inconsistencies in municipal personnel administration and infringe on the rights of the municipality’s new mayor to appoint suitable district chiefs,” DPP spokesman Chuang Shuo-han (莊碩漢) told a press conference.
Nevertheless, he said the DPP is happy that the KMT eventually decided to drop a proposed monthly “research fee” of NT$45,000 for the “advisers” for four years.
Rebutting King’s allegation that the DPP had vacillated on the issue and adopted a double standard, Chuang said that the DPP had never wavered on its stance and that the KMT itself had changed its stance on the issue under public pressure three times.
Chuang also unveiled the results of a telephone opinion survey the party conducted on Thursday, which showed that among 668 eligible voters, 66.8 percent of respondents were opposed to the planned automatic appointment of township chiefs as district chiefs for four more years, while 22.1 percent voiced support for the proposal.
More than 60 percent of the respondents who described themselves as pan-blue supporters or centrist voters also said they opposed the proposal, Chuang said.
As for the proposal concerning paying a monthly fee for the “advisers,” 15.4 percent of the respondents expressed support, while more than 75 percent of the “pan-blue” respondents or centrist voters voiced opposition.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday that the change in the number of seats in the Taipei City Council would not affect the power of councilors serving now.
“The only change that would happen to the Taipei City Council this year is that, instead of having a certain number of seats for Aborigines, now there will be a separate number of seats for mountain Aborigines and plains Aborigines in the Taipei City Council once amendments to the Local Government Act are adopted by the legislature,” Deputy Minister of the Interior Chien Tai-lang (簡太郎) said. “The details are to be decided by the Central Election Commission later.”
Nothing would be changed for non-Aboriginal Taipei City Councilors, he said.
Chien made the remarks to clear doubts from Taipei City councilors from both the KMT and the DPP. The councilors are worried that the amendment may create problems in their re-election campaign in the year-end election if the electoral districts are redrawn when the number of seats is increased from 52 to more than 60 after amendments are passed in the legislature.
KMT Taipei City Councilor Yang Shih-chiu (楊實秋) voiced concern that it may be illegal if the changes apply to the year-end election, since the Election and Recall Act for Public Servants (公職人員選舉罷免法) stipulates that redrawing electoral district must be completed a year prior to the election.
Chien urged city councilors not to worry.
“The changes in the Local Government Act about the number of city council seats and electoral districts are mainly for the newly upgraded directly administrated cities because of their new administrative status,” Chien said. “The new rules would not apply to the Taipei City Council, because the city of Taipei is not one of the newly upgraded cities, and the deadline for publicizing changes in electoral districts has already passed in Taipei City’s case.”
However, Chien added that the change in separating seats for mountain Aborigines and plains Aborigines would apply in the year-end election.
“There is a clause in the amendments that excludes the election of Aboriginal city councilors from the one year rule in the election law,” he said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY RICH CHANG AND SHIH HSIU-CHUAN
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