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Executive Yuan to refer NCC list by next month

The Executive Yuan will compile a list of candidates for the National Communications Commission (NCC) and refer it to the legislature for confirmation by the end of January, government spokesman Shieh Jhy-wey (謝志偉) said on Thursday.

Shieh made the remarks in response to an amendment to Article 4 of the Organic Law of the National Communications Commission (通訊傳播委員會組織法) which the Legislative Yuan passed on Thursday.

The original bill stipulated that the independent media regulatory body should be composed of 13 members recommended by major political parties in proportion to the number of seats they hold in the legislature. The controversial provision, passed in 2005, was later declared unconstitutional by the Council of Grand Justices on the grounds that it infringed upon the power of the executive branch.

After nearly two years of haggling between governing and opposition parties, a compromise was finally worked out to end the controversy, with both camps making concessions.

While the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) agreed to drop its partisan "proportional representation" principle concerning the NCC setup, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) agreed to refer the nomination list proposed by the premier to the legislature for approval.

Under the amended law, the premier will have full power to decide the nomination list, but the appointment is subject to legislative approval.

Shieh said that requiring legislative confirmation for the NCC nominations still constituted an infringement upon the power of the executive branch.

Nevertheless, he said, the DPP administration was willing to accept such an arrangement now that the opposition no longer insisted on its unconstitutional proportional representation principle.

Also see: EDITORIAL: In defense of a dignified executive
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