DPP officials said yesterday that President-elect Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) would not shift his stance on contact with the KMT as he organizes a new cabinet, saying he is determined to form a "people's government" -- transcending the limits of parties, ethnicity and sexual orientation -- and said the KMT should listen to the people.
"It is no longer necessary for the old political system of a `party leading the government' (
"Chen has said clearly that he will step away from all political party affairs and that even the DPP cannot represent the President in negotiating with any other party," Lin said.
DPP lawmaker Shen Fu-hsiung (
"Although the KMT holds 116 of the 224 seats, they now apparently face a crisis, a split," Shen said.
"Some members regarded as supporters of President Lee Teng-hui (
Shen said that it was possible that Tang promised to serve as premier in a private capacity -- not representing his party. If so, he said, then other possibilities could follow.
"Tang could invite other (KMT) heavyweights to join his cabinet and that would speed up the party's split in the legislature," Shen said.
The president-elect's chief policy-making advisor, Lin Chia-cheng (
He said if the people gave Chen power -- by electing him -- then he should try to achieve his campaign platforms.
One of Chen's platform planks, Lin Chia-cheng said, was to organize a "people's government" -- that is, a cabinet made up of the best quality people, where power would not be shared with any particular party.
"The constitutional make-up of our country is not a `cabinet system.' We can negotiate with other parties in the legislature, but it could be different issues with different parties," he said.
He stressed that Chen and Tang would respect one another in the process of organizing the new cabinet.
"Chen will respect the authority of his appointed premier and the process will continue regardless of whether the KMT allows Tang to serve or not," said Lin Chia-cheng.
Shen added that Chen would definitely guide the process of organizing the Cabinet, while leaving the choice of military positions -- such as the next defense minister -- to Tang.
"Although Chen will retain predominant power, he will have to exclude some DPP politicians who are pro-independence, because of Tang's anti-independence stance," Shen said.
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
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