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KMT planning to push amendment to Nationality Act

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) said yesterday that his party would propose an amendment to the Nationality Act (國籍法) that would require individuals holding government posts to give up permanent residency in other countries within one year of assuming office.

Wu made the remark a day after the Presidential Office made an announcement concerning the foreign residency status of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) nominees for Examination Yuan and Control Yuan posts.

The Presidential Office said that six Examination Yuan nominees and four Control Yuan nominees had previously held US green cards or dual citizenship.

All 10 have since relinquished that status or their status has become invalid.

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Yeh Yi-ching (葉宜津) said she believed the Presidential Office’s claims but added that her party would maintain a “cautious attitude” and thoroughly review each of the nominees’ histories.

Wu said his party would put forward the draft amendment to the Nationality Act in the coming week to establish clear regulations to resolve the controversy over the foreign permanent residency and citizenship status of government officials.

He said that, as it stands, the Nationality Act only covers dual citizenship, while the amendment would also provide unambiguous rules on foreign residency status.

DPP Legislator Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said Taiwan’s situation is unique and claimed that it was “obviously wrong” for individuals holding government posts to have the attitude of “having a lifejacket in reserve” by holding residency status for another country.

Kuan said she would fully support the KMT’s amendment if it was “playing on the level,” but expressed concern that the move by the ruling party might only be “some sort of ploy.”

Additional reporting by Jimmy Chuang
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