Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators complained about the “arrogance” of the government during a gathering with President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday, singling out the National Security Council (NSC) in particular.
KMT Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) told reporters after the gathering that she complained to Ma personally about the impertinence of government agencies.
“[The NSC] is very arrogant. For example, during the controversy over US beef imports, the council was overbearing when the legislature’s Finance Committee questioned it during the committee’s review of the NSC’s budget request,” Lo said.
Many other government branches also turned a deaf ear to legislators’ suggestions and public petitions, she said.
“[The government] seems to disregard people’s complaints. The government’s arrogance has made it impossible for government officials to touch the hearts of people with low and middle incomes. This is the most serious problem we are facing now,” Lo said.
KMT Legislator Chu Fong-chi (朱鳳芝) said she also spoke her mind during the gathering, complaining about the Ma administration’s poor communication skills and lack of emotional quotient (“EQ”) in particular.
“[The government] often fails to clearly elaborate its policy while causing public misunderstanding,” Chu said.
Ma spent hours meeting a group of KMT lawmakers yesterday — one day before the legislature is to decide whether to hold a provisional session to deal with a controversial amendment to the Local Government Act (地方制度法).
Meetings with other KMT lawmakers have also been scheduled for this week.
Last Monday, Ma held a banquet with KMT legislators but at the time legislators followed the suggestion from KMT Legislator Hsu Yao-chang (徐耀昌) not to talk about politics over the dinner table.
Lo said Ma expressed concern for the proposed amendment as well as the government’s plan to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China. She said Ma stressed the need to sign the agreement this year, but she said she complained about the government’s inability to clarify the nature of the ECFA.
Other KMT legislators said Ma agreed with KMT Secretary-General King Pu-tsung’s (金溥聰) decision to call Minister of Environmental Protection Stephen Shen (沈世宏) to express opposition to the ministry’s plan to fine those who smoke while walking or driving. KMT legislators said Ma told them the government would not implement the policy.
King sparked a controversy by calling Shen on Thursday to voice concern about the planned policy.
At a separate setting, Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) rebutted Democratic Progressive Party criticism that King had infringed upon the premier’s authority.
“If secretary-general of the ruling party cannot express the public’s concern [to the Executive Yuan], does that mean the public should all shut up?” Wu told reporters in Taoyuan.
Wu said it was impossible for King to interfere with the his authority because “I am the one who can decide whether to pass a certain proposal [during the Executive Yuan’s meeting].”
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
RULES BROKEN: The MAC warned Chinese not to say anything that would be harmful to the autonomous status of Taiwan or undermine its sovereignty A Chinese couple accused of disrupting a pro-democracy event in Taipei organized by Hong Kong residents has been deported, the National Immigration Agency said in a statement yesterday afternoon. A Chinese man, surnamed Yao (姚), and his wife were escorted by immigration officials to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, where they boarded a flight to China before noon yesterday, the agency said. The agency said that it had annulled the couple’s entry permits, citing alleged contraventions of the Regulations Governing the Approval of Entry of People of the Mainland Area into the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民進入台灣地區許可辦法). The couple applied to visit a family member in
RSS