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Independent lawmakers form legislative caucus

After a month of maneuvering, independent lawmakers yesterday filed an application with the legislature's secretariat to form their own caucus.

The new caucus, under the tentative name of "the Alliance for Advancement of Public Welfare," is to consist of Aboriginal Legislator Walis Pelin (瓦歷斯貝林), New Party Legislator Wu Cherng-dean (吳成典), as well as independent lawmakers Tsai Hau (蔡豪), Yen Chin-piao (顏清標) and Kao Meng-ting (高孟定). Three former KMT lawmakers, Chen Chin-ting (陳進丁), Lu Hsin-ming (呂新民) and Lin Pin-kuan (林炳坤) have also agreed to join.

The lawmakers have said they want to act as a stabilizing force in the Legislative Yuan, where no party has a majority and partisan rancor runs deep.

The caucus, the fifth in the legislature, will elect a convener, a deputy convener, a whip and a spokesman. The arrangement will allow its eight members to take turns assuming leadership posts every other session.

All caucuses can send representatives to participate in cross-party negotiations, which play an important role in resolving partisan differences over the content of bills and the order of business.

While the legislature is in session, the caucus plans to meet every Tuesday and may convene special meetings when the need arises.

In the previous session, the independents were one lawmaker short of being able to establish a caucus. The legislature's internal rules stipulate that a caucus must consist of at least eight lawmakers or garner more than five percent of the vote in legislative elections.

The caucus bars its members from making unauthorized speeches on disputed issues but makes no mention of how it will punish defiant members.

A caucus can stall the legislative process by withholding its consent from any proposed agreement.

Cashing in on their lack of political affiliation, the independents have been flirting with both the ruling and opposition camps, though they have mostly sided with the "pan-green" bloc during key votes in the previous session.
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