Legislative negotiations on how to review the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with China ended fruitlessly yesterday, while the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) proposed inviting President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to give a “state-of-the-union” style address on the legislative floor.
After hours of negotiation, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) told reporters that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the DPP had failed to agree on whether to adopt a DPP motion to review the ECFA article by article.
Ma has said the legislature should vote on the ECFA as a package because it is a “quasi-treaty” and that lawmakers do not have the power to amend the content of the agreement.
Wang said last week that there have been cases in which the legislature made revisions to international agreements signed by the government.
The legislature had planned to hold a session to deliberate the review procedure tomorrow morning and call a provisional plenary session in the afternoon, during which Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) would brief lawmakers and answer their questions on the deal.
“The DPP said it would not endorse the conclusion of this cross-party negotiation unless legislators have finalized the procedure to review [the ECFA],” Wang said yesterday. “I hope both parties can listen to each other’s opinions today [Monday] and talk tomorrow morning.”
Wang said DPP caucus whip Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) also proposed inviting Ma to deliver a state-of-the-union style of address about the ECFA.
Under the Act Governing the Legislature’s Exercise of Power (立法院職權行使法), the legislature has the authority to listen to addresses on topics concerning “national security.” Such a motion should be proposed by at least one-fourth of the 113 legislators and approved by the legislature, the act says.
Lawmakers can raise questions about the address that the premier can answer but they do not enjoy the power to quiz the president on the legislative floor, the act says.
The KMT caucus called the DPP’s proposal a “stalling tactic,” with KMT caucus whip Lin Yi-shih (林益世) asking whether the DPP would be willing to refer the ECFA to a vote if the president gave such an address.
Lin urged the DPP to stop “manipulating” the ECFA issue for political gain, saying the premier’s scheduled briefing was meant to help lawmakers understand the content of the pact.
DPP Legislator Lee Chun-yee (李俊毅) said yesterday’s negotiations did not deliver any substantial results, as the KMT brought up many proposals during the meeting that did not deal with the ECFA.
“The KMT wants to try and sneak in these unrelated proposals” during the extraordinary session, Lee said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY VINCENT Y. CHAO
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