The KMT legislative caucus yesterday recommended that the party expel 10 legislators who voted for nominees for top government positions on Thursday and Friday in defiance of the caucus' order to boycott the ballots.
KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰), who yesterday returned from a two-week trip to the US, promised that the party would deal with the rebels as soon as possible, saying it was regrettable that some "unqualified people" won confirmation for their appointments.
On Thursday, a nominee for grand justice won confirmation even though the KMT's caucus ordered its members not to vote. Four nominees for positions in the Control Yuan and another grand justice nominee were voted down.
On Friday, the legislature confirmed the appointment of former DPP chairman Yao Chia-wen (姚嘉文) as Examination Yuan president and 19 others as Examination Yuan members.
The KMT caucus had ordered its members to boycott the vote for Yao and eight of the other nominees. The nominee for vice president of the Examination Yuan was voted down.
"We will examine the disobedient conduct of these legislators and deal with them as soon as possible according to the rules and discipline of the party," Lien said.
According to the list submitted by the KMT caucus, those subject to expulsion include Lu Shin-ming (呂新民), Lin Pin-kuan (林炳坤), Chen Chin-ting (陳進丁), Yang Wen-hsin (楊文欣), Lin Chin-chun (林進春), Lin Nan-sheng (林南生), Tseng Hua-te (曾華德), Yang Jen-fu (楊仁福), Liao Kuo-tung (廖國棟) and Chen Ken-te (陳根德).
Caucus whip Lin Yi-shih (林益世) explained that the expulsion was recommended in accordance with a decision reached by the caucus before the ballots, namely that "anyone who casts their votes will be expelled."
Still, it is uncertain whether the lawmakers will be expelled, as the caucus also suggested that the party take into account the severity of their violations when handing down punishments, Lin said.
For example, Tseng, Yang, Liao and Chen Ken-te, who voted for grand justices and Control Yuan members on Thursday, heeded the party's advice and did not go to Friday's ballot for Examination Yuan president, Lin said.
Chen Kang-chin (陳庚金), director-general of the Evaluation and Discipline Committee, said his committee will decide today when to meet to discipline the legislators.
Chen said the committee will handle these latest cases of disobedience together with others that occurred previously in the just-ended legislative session.
The KMT has threatened disciplinary action on five occasions in the session.
In addition to the three ballots taking place on Thursday and Friday, these include the Feb. 1 elections for Legislative Yuan speaker and vice speaker and the Feb. 19 ballot on overturning the KMT-proposed amendments to the Law Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法).
KMT Secretary-general Lin Fong-cheng (
Lin reiterated that the the party was more concerned about unity that it was about the number of legislators.
The KMT holds 68 seats in the legislature and is able to control a slim majority in the 224-seat chamber by allying with the PFP, which has 46 seats.
Lin said the ballots had allowed the KMT to identify who was vulnerable to the DPP's "temptation" and who was not.
The KMT and PFP have accused the DPP of buying votes from opposition legislators for between NT$5 million and NT$10 million each and promising them budgets for development projects in their constituencies in exchange for their support.
The DPP has denied those allegations.
* Lu Shin-ming (呂新民)
* Lin Pin-kuan (林炳坤)
* Chen Chin-ting (陳進丁)
* Yang Wen-hsin (楊文欣)
* Lin Chin-chun (林進春)
* Lin Nan-sheng (林南生)
* Tseng Hua-te (曾華德)
* Yang Jen-fu (楊仁福)
* Liao Kuo-tung (廖國棟)
* Chen Ken-te (陳根德)
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
RSS