Independents vie for influence

Lawmakers should be able to appropriate a limited amount of funds for public construction projects because they understand the needs of their constituencies better, a group of independent legislators said yesterday.

The proposal came under heavy fire from colleagues of all stripes, who suspected proponents of the measure of using the issue as a bargaining chip to boost their own interests during negotiations over the government budget.

The Non-partisan Alliance, consisting of eight independent lawmakers, told a news conference that the Cabinet should reinstate lawmakers' power to recommend public works projects.

"As popularly elected representatives, lawmakers know the needs of their constituents," independent lawmaker Lin Pin-kuan (林炳坤) said.

"With frequent access to Cabinet officials, they emerge as ideal candidates to communicate between the grassroots and the government."

Chen Chin-ting (陳進丁), another independent lawmaker, said each legislator should be allowed to recommend up to NT$100 million worth of public works.

To dismiss concerns about conflicts of interest and other malfeasance, he said the Cabinet could publish information about the projects and their values suggested by lawmakers each year.

Independent Legislator Kao Meng-ting (高孟定) said the legislative prerogative has long existed and that ruling lawmakers are more effective than their opposition counterparts in having their recommendations realized.

"We just want to make the practices more transparent. That's all," he said.

But DPP legislative whip Wang Tuoh (王拓) frowned on the proposal and denied that he or any fellow colleagues enjoy the privilege to meddle with public works projects.

He said that during the KMT administration, some lawmakers were able to make the Cabinet build public construction projects such as parking lots in their constituencies.

They then awarded contracts for those projects to companies owned by their friends, relatives or themselves, Wang said, adding the practice no longer existed after the transfer of power in May 2000.

Going a step further, TSU legislative leader Su Ying-kwei (蘇盈貴) blasted the independent group as shameless for promoting such a measure that would allow them to line their own pockets.

He urged independent colleagues to give up on the scheme, saying it had no chance of success.

Both the KMT and PFP legislative caucuses agreed.