The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus yesterday said it would ask the Executive Yuan to raise a motion to oppose the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus’ infrastructure proposals and prepare to file for a constitutional interpretation if the KMT-dominated legislature forces their passage.
The DPP caucus described the three infrastructure plans for transportation links to eastern Taiwan proposed by the KMT as “three money pit projects” that would cost more than NT$2 trillion (US$61.72 billion).
It would ask the Executive Yuan to oppose public projects that would drain state financial resources, DPP caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
It would also file for a constitutional interpretation if KMT lawmakers push the proposals through by making them special statute bills, she added.
The three bills propose constructing an expressway for Hualien and Taitung counties to link to the national highway system with an estimated budget of NT$250 billion; building a high-speed rail system in eastern Taiwan that would link to the national line at a cost of NT$1 trillion; and extending Freeway No. 6 (also known as the Central East West Freeway) for vehicle traffic between Taichung City and Puli (埔里), which would run through the Central Mountain Range and end in Hualien City at a cost of more than NT$800 billion.
DPP legislators oppose these “three money pit projects” as they lack input from transportation and engineering experts, disregard environmental impact assessments, are devoid of transparency and financial accountability, and had bypassed the deliberation process in the legislature, Wu said.
Photo: CNA
Moreover, the construction of these projects would pass through indigenous land, which requires the consent of indigenous communities as stipulated in the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act (原住民族基本法), DPP lawmakers said.
Building transportation links through the earthquake-active zones of the Hualien-Taitung Rift Valley (花東縱谷) and the east coast region also poses a geohazard, they said.
On the fiscal front, the proposed projects would contravene Article 70 of the Constitution, which stipulates: “The Legislative Yuan shall not make proposals for an increase in the expenditures in the budgetary bill presented by the Executive Yuan,” Wu said.
KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁), a former Hualien county commissioner, yesterday said he is fighting for public projects and improved transportation links to bring economic prosperity, enhance travel safety and improve the livelihoods of Hualien County residents.
Taiwan People’s Party caucus whip Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said he supports the KMT’s proposals, but added that he has asked for additional clauses to ensure fiscal restraint so that the projects would not sink into debt or use the state’s special funds.
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS