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
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
RSS