The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus today is scheduled to request that the Legislative Yuan call a special legislative session to debate an eight-year, NT$80 billion (US$2.5 billion) package upgrading flood-prevention infrastructure, among other priority bills.
DPP caucus whip Jao Yung-ching (
The Constitution stipulates that the Legislative Yuan can hold an extraordinary session during the legislative recess if a quarter of the lawmakers or the head of state requests it.
PHOTO: CNA
In accordance with legislative procedure, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
Executive Director of the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) Central Policy Committee Tseng Yung-chuan (
Tseng argued that the flood-control budget should be allocated in the government's regular annual budget, and that the DPP should not use populism to pressure opposition parties to pass bills they want.
"The legislature held only two special legislative sessions during 50 years of KMT rule, but since the DPP came to power, there have been five already," Tseng said. "How do they expect us to want to meet again after their inflammatory remarks about Speaker Wang?"
Tseng was referring to comments made recently by Cabinet Spokesman Cho Jung-tai (
Premier Frank Hsieh (
Wang, however, shrugged off Hsieh's request, saying that the government has at least NT$19.3 billion at its disposal, which should be enough for immediate relief and reconstruction efforts.
In response to Wang's remarks, Cho said Wang must be preoccupied with his KMT chairmanship campaign to "come up with such an illogical comment." Upset by Cho's remark, Wang turned down Hsieh's request to meet with him on Friday to discuss the provisional legislation session.
People First Party caucus whip Chen Chih-pin (
Although the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) is not averse to the provisional session, TSU caucus whip Ho Min-hao (何敏豪) said that the government should have taken advantage of its emergency funds, instead of waiting for the legislature to pass a flood-control package.
Although it is the lawmakers' constitutional right to request a special legislative session during the recess of the lawmaking body, Lo Cheng-tien (
"The Executive Yuan has every right to ask the legislature, which was forced to enter an early recess in May because of the National Assembly election," he said. "I don't think Speaker Wang himself is keen on talking opposition lawmakers into holding a special session, because he is busy with the chairmanship election."
Lo said that legislative inefficiency was what had been forcing the DPP to resort to such a practice.
Legislative inefficiency, Lo said, results from lawmakers' wasting too much time advertising themselves by holding press conferences, engaging in political bickering, humiliating government officials at legislative committee meetings and questioning them at plenary legislative sittings, while spending too little time seriously and rationally debating bills.
Even if the DPP eventually gets its wish to have a special session, Lo said, it might turn out to be counterproductive if parties still fail to see eye to eye on certain bills, taking into account the numerical advantage of opposition parties.
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