Thu, Nov 30, 2000 page1

• Chen's aides grilled at legislature

  Q &A Opposition lawmakers took advantage of the appearance of two young aides to the president in the legislature and bombarded them with questions

  • By Lin Mei-chun / STAFF REPORTER
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  An appearance in the Legislative Yuan yesterday by President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) top aides, dubbed his "boy scouts" because of their youth, seemed like the best chance yet for opposition lawmakers to sink their teeth into the new government in a bid to further reveal its alleged lack of experience.

  The session, however, didn't get any further than personal attacks against Secretary to the President Ma Yung-cheng (馬永成) and presidential advisor Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴).

  Simply beginning the meeting was difficult, as DPP legislators and opposition parties spent almost an hour arguing over whether the aides should be present at this or any legislative session.

  

  Ma Yung-cheng, left, secretary of the Presidential Office, who is also a close aide of the president, and Secretary-General to the President Yu Shyi-kun were questioned yesterday by legislators during an interpellation section.

  PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES

  DPP lawmakers claimed that only members of the Executive Yuan were required to be questioned by legislators, while opposition lawmakers said that anyone was obligated to be present for questioning by lawmakers if necessary, in accordance with the Law Governing Legislators' Exercise of Power (立法院職權行使法).

  After an intense exchange of words, the session began under the condition that questioning should be limited to top executives and it was up to Secretary-General to the President Yu Shyi-kun to determine whether it was necessary for the top aides to reply.

  New Party lawmaker Elmer Feng (馮滬祥) quickly directed his attack towards Ma, first asking him about where he lived and then about his drinking habits.

  Feng said that Ma's status in the government was not high enough for him to stay in an apartment reserved only for officials of the Presidential Office.

  Ma said he was qualified to stay in the dormitory building provided for officials and that the arrangement had been handled in accordance with the law.

  Feng then continued grilling Ma over his drinking habits, saying rumors have it that Ma often attempts to establish good relations with the media by drinking with them using government money.

  Responding to the remarks, Ma said: "Absolutely never."

  Feng took aim at Ma because in 1997 Ma was forced to step down from his post as the secretary to then-Taipei mayor Chen Shui-bian for his alleged carousing at hostess clubs.

  Feng then shifted his attention to Hsiao, who was most recently the center of media attention over allegations that she was having an affair with the president.

  Feng didn't touch on the affair but focused instead on Hsiao's dual citizenship. While Feng repeatedly requested Hsiao to answer his questions herself, Yu insisted he could speak for her.

  Yu said Hsiao had an ROC passport, so she was considered a citizen of the ROC. But Feng pushed further asking: "Does she have a ROC ID card?"

  "No she doesn't," Yu said, adding that in her position as advisor to the president, Hsiao did not need to relinquish her US citizenship.

  Hsiao's father is Taiwanese but her mother is a US citizen, Hsiao said in press release yesterday.

  Hsiao said she could not abandon her US citizenship before she obtained her ROC ID card. According to Taiwan's legal regulations, Hsiao said, she had to stay in Taiwan continuously for a year to qualify to apply for a Taiwanese identification card.

  Due to her work, Hsiao said she had never stayed in Taiwan for more than a year, therefore, she could not file the application. "But I will continue to work to get my Taiwan ID," she said.

  The term "boy scouts" was coined by journalist Wu Chung-hsin (吳忠信), the author of The Son of Taiwan (臺灣之子) -- a biography of Chen, after he had a falling-out with Chen. Wu used the term to attack policies he felt were flawed, saying the decisions were made because of the poor advice Chen received from his young aides.
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