STAFF REPORTER, with CNA
To avoid further delaying the next legislative session, lawmakers decided yesterday to invite Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) and other Cabinet members to present the administration's policy goals today.
The session, originally scheduled to begin Tuesday, was postponed due to Typhoon Nari, which lashed northern Taiwan with the worst flooding in decades.
Two lawmakers from the three opposition parties, as well as two of their independent colleagues, will take the first shots and grill Cabinet ministers over such hot issues as relief work in the wake of Nari, WTO entry and the recent terrorist attacks against the US.
People First Party legislator Liu Wen-hsiung (劉文雄) said that entry to the WTO could worsen unemployment, shrink tariff revenues and force farmers to switch professions following the opening of the domestic market to foreign competition.
"We want to know whether the government has made the necessary preparations to cope with these challenges," Liu said, adding that the upcoming WTO accession is also expected to cause fundamental changes in cross-strait relations.
Liu urged the government to adopt a proactive strategy to cope with cross-strait affairs.
All legislative caucuses pledged to complete the review of 14 remaining bills required for Taiwan's WTO membership.
Many lawmakers are also concerned about impending US military retaliation against last week's terrorist attacks and its potential fallout on Taiwan's national security.
"Should a war on global terrorism take place, it would certainly have a grave impact on the world economy," PFP legislator Chou Hsi-wei (周錫偉) said.
The legislature is to break for the entire month of November, allowing lawmakers to seek re-election in December.
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