The Legislature’s Transportation Committee decided yesterday to delay its review of the Taoyuan Airport Special Zone bill as controversy over some of its articles remained unresolved.
“The public still has some doubts,” said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chen Ken-te (陳根德), who presided over the meeting. “Let’s review it [the bill] another day, when everyone is clear about its contents.”
The bill was proposed by seven legislators representing districts in Taoyuan County, including Chen.
Chen issued the ruling after several lawmakers, from the KMT as well as the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), criticized the bill.
DPP Legislator Yeh Yi-ching (葉宜津) said that the zone’s directors, consisting of just seven to nine members, would be entitled to decide how they wanted to develop the zone.
They would also be free from other regulations, she said.
“It [the zone] is like a small kingdom,” Yeh said. “The chairman of the board would be the master of that small kingdom.”
DPP Legislator, Kuo Wen-cheng (郭玟成) also expressed disapproval.
“This is not a bill for the ‘Airport City,’ nor is it one tailored to fulfill Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) campaign promises,” Kuo said.
“You might as well change the name of the bill to the ‘Republic of Taoyuan Airport.’ We are looking at a completely independent system!” he said.
KMT Legislator Tsao Erh-chang (曹爾忠), representing districts in Matsu, also challenged the bill.
Tsao said that he was for the idea of making Taoyuan International Airport more competitive. However, the revenue generated from the airport is used to sustain 17 other domestic airports.
Once Taoyuan International Airport becomes an independent administration, transportation subsidies for the residents in the surrounding islands may be cut, he said.
“I strongly oppose it [the bill],” Tsao said. “What would other airports live on then?”
“You lawmakers from Taoyuan had better restrain yourselves,” he said.
Legislators from other counties demanded similar development plans for their hometowns.
“I suggest they erase ‘Taoyuan’ from the bill’s title,” said KMT Legislator Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順) from Kaohsiung City. “That way other airports could apply for the same law.”
The committee began reviewing the bill on Monday and had reserved only a small period for further deliberations yesterday.
However, the measure has drawn criticism from both government officials and the media.
Expecting that the bill might be passed without opposition, the KMT and DPP have both mobilized their lawmakers to attend the meeting.
The Taoyuan County government meanwhile dispatched officials to monitor the proceedings of the meeting. At times, the officials passed notes to KMT lawmakers to offer instructions on the bill.
The county government has actively sought the support of the media, as several reporters covering the Taoyuan Airport Special Zone bill said county officials had contacted them hoping to “better explain the bill.”
Meanwhile, the DPP legislative caucus held a press conference yesterday morning urging the KMT to postpone the review of the bill until the new government takes office on May 20.
“This proposal concerns 16 government bodies and at least 33 laws must be amended to make the proposal possible,” DPP legislative caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) said. “To do this, we need more careful discussion and review. And it will definitely take time. We cannot be careful enough.”
Lai said that the DPP would endorse the idea of lifting bans on foreign visitors at the airport, but there need to be enough related mechanisms.
He said that the proposal should not be passed without further discussion because it would create problems in terms of national security and other problems.
“There are still a lot of ridiculous and impractical regulations in the proposal and they need to be fixed, or Taiwan would become a wonderland for Chinese visitors since there will be a lot of opportunities, such as job vacancies, for them as long as they can set foot on Taiwan’s soil,” Lai said.
Echoing the KMT’s Tsao, DPP deputy caucus whip Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said the proposal, once approved, would impact Taiwan’s other 17 airports.
“Taoyuan International Airport is the only one of these airports that is making a profit of approximately NT$6 billion [US$198 million] every year. Under the proposal, the airport would only have to pay NT$1.8 billion to the government,” Kuan said.
Kuan said the KMT should make sure that the proposal will not impact on government offices, airports and related industries before the new government pushes it through.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
The eastern extension of the Taipei MRT Red Line could begin operations as early as late June, the Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said it is considering offering one month of free rides on the new section to mark its opening. Construction progress on the 1.4km extension, which is to run from the current terminal Xiangshan Station to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, was 90.6 percent complete by the end of last month, the department said in a report to the Taipei City Council's Transportation Committee. While construction began in October 2016 with an
RSS