The Central Election Commission (CEC) should proceed with the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) referendum proposal for reducing thermal power generation, KMT spokesperson Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said yesterday, adding that blocking it would be an obstruction of public opinion.
The commission on Saturday said that there was a strong possibility that the amount of irregularities found among the petition forms submitted could constitute criminal behavior.
Of the 497,193 petition forms the KMT submitted for a proposed referendum to reduce air pollution, which was initiated by KMT Legislator Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕), 11,849 signatures, or about 2.38 percent, belonged to people who had already passed away before the signature collection began, it said.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
The commission said it is bound by Article 241 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (刑事訴訟法), which stipulates that “a public official who, in the execution of his official duties, learns that there is suspicion that an offense has been committed, must report it.”
The commission is to hold a meeting tomorrow to decide whether it will file a criminal complaint against the KMT, and whether the referendum will be deemed valid for voting on Nov. 24.
The results of the household registration agencies’ examination of the petition forms for Lu’s referendum proposal have been released on the CEC’s Web site, it added.
The commission should disclose which signatures have been disqualified, Hung said, adding that the KMT has photocopies of each signature and is willing to reconfirm them.
However, before this happens, the commission should also release a report on how it determined whether the signatures were copied or forged, he said.
The commission should list the invalid signatures and notify the petitioners so that they have an opportunity to raise an objection, Lu said in a statement yesterday.
Separately yesterday, KMT caucus secretary-general William Tseng (曾銘宗) said the proportion of invalid signatures collected for referendum proposals is relatively higher in Kaohsiung, Tainan and other Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-governed cities and counties.
He plans to ask the commission to disclose its standards for assessing the validity of the signatures, and question CEC Chairman Chen In-chin (陳英鈐) when he reports to the Legislative Yuan today, Tseng said.
Holding a referendum is a fundamental right, DPP caucus secretary-general Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) said, adding that the KMT should take a closer look at itself if it feels the need to fabricate signatures.
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