The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus dominated the Legislative Yuan's committee head elections yesterday, winning 15 of the 16 seats in the eight standing committees.
KMT legislators Wu Yu-sheng (
KMT legislators Wong Chung-chun (
PHOTO: CHU PEI-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
The Education and Culture Committee will be led by KMT Legislator Chiang Yi-hsiung (江義雄) and People First Party (PFP) Legislator Lin Cheng-er (林正二), while the Transportation Committee meetings will be presided over by KMT legislators Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順) and Chen Ken-te (陳根德).
The Judiciary, Organic Laws and Statutes Committee will be headed by KMT legislators Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) and Wu Ching-chih (吳清池), while the Sanitation, Environment, Social Welfare and Labor Committee will be led by KMT legislators Chung Shao-ho (鍾紹和) and Hsu Shao-ping (徐少萍).
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus, which has 27 of the 113 legislative seats, did not nominate any candidates for the elections after rejecting the KMT caucus' offer of four spots.
The Non-Partisan Solidarity Union (NPSU) caucus, which has three legislative seats, made a last-minute nomination of Legislator May Chin (高金素梅) to head the Judiciary, Organic Laws and Statutes Committee but she did not win.
When asked for comment, director of the KMT's Policy Research Committee, Lin Yi-shih (林益世), said the party was unable to negotiate committee head elections with the NPSU in advance because the union did not propose negotiations until Sunday morning.
Lin said he had personally explained the caucus' decision to support the committee head candidates it had nominated on Friday, adding that he hoped the KMT and NPSU would continue to cooperate in the future.
After the elections, however, NPSU lawmakers criticized the KMT for breaking off negotiations and not allowing a NPSU legislator to take a convener seat.
May Chin told a press conference that the KMT caucus had agreed it would allow her to take one of two Judiciary Committee convener posts, but the election results proved the KMT had broken its promise.
She said KMT legislators could not win the public's trust.
NPSU Legislator Lin Pin-Kuan (林炳坤) accused the KMT of abandoning the negotiations and said the union might refuse to negotiate with the KMT in the future.
Meanwhile, DPP deputy caucus whip Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) told reporters that KMT legislators had made no effort to avoid conflict of interest when choosing the committees they wanted to seat on and in the convener elections. Certain KMT legislators who have joined the Judiciary Committee are under investigation or facing trial, while those on the Economics and Energy Committee represent local interest groups, she said.
Additional reporting by Rich Chang
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