Only one extra legislative session might be called next month, although party caucuses had initially planned to call two sessions after the legislative session ended on Friday, with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus saying that it would make reviewing a draft bill regulating ill-gotten party assets its top priority in the extra session.
The legislature failed to pass the draft bill on Friday due to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus’ obstruction of proceedings.
While opinions are mixed among DPP legislators about the change of plan regarding the number and date of extra sessions, New Power Party (NPP) lawmakers said they think the extra legislative session should be held this month so that the draft bill dealing with ill-gotten party assets can be taken care of as soon as possible.
DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said he talked with KMT Legislator Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) on Friday evening, adding that their preliminary decision is to hold one extra legislative session from Aug. 8 to Aug. 19, and hopefully to have the drafted amendment to the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) pass its third reading by Sept. 28.
He said the DPP caucus would hold a meeting today to hear its legislators’ opinions.
Responding to questions about a possible decision to review the draft bills about transitional justice and the regulation of political parties’ assets next month, DPP Legislator Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) said the party’s legislators have divided opinions and he thinks the public have high expectations of them to deal with the bill regulating political parties’ assets as soon as possible, adding that postponing it would let the public down.
KMT Legislator Sufin Siluko (廖國棟) said postponing the session to next month can allow everyone to pull their forces together and start afresh, adding that the draft bills on the transitional justice promotion act and the regulation of political parties’ assets “are not so urgent,” as those concerning people’s livelihood and the economy.
The KMT caucus is not trying to block the two draft bills, but is urging the DPP to put forward reasonable legislation, he added.
People First Party Legislator Chen Yi-chieh (陳怡潔) said the extra legislative session should review bills concerning people’s livelihood and the economy first, and urged the DPP and NPP to stop insisting on reviewing the two bills first, so that confrontation between political parties can be reduced in the extra session.
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