The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative caucus yesterday urged Central Election Commission (CEC) Chairman Chen Ying-chin (陳英鈐) not to appeal a ruling by the Taipei High Administrative Court that the commission should accept follow-up submissions for petitions that it rejected.
The court on Wednesday ruled that follow-up submissions should be accepted, because under the amended Referendum Act (公民投票法) “referendum proposals should be approved in principle, and should only be rejected under extraordinary circumstances.”
Chen announced after the ruling that the commission would appeal it.
The case was filed with the administrative court by nuclear energy advocate Huang Shih-hsiu (黃士修) after the commission rejected more than 20,000 signed petitions that he tried to deliver to it to make up for a shortage in the number of petitions he had earlier submitted for a referendum proposal on the nation’s energy policy.
Huang was trying to meet the legal requirement for the number of petitions needed for a referendum to pass its initiation stage, which is 282,000.
The commission had rejected the extra petitions on the grounds that it had not asked him to make follow-up submissions.
The KMT caucus said Chen was acting as a hitman for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has pledged to phase out nuclear energy in 2025.
Speaking at a news conference at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei, KMT caucus secretary-general William Tseng (曾銘宗) said that Article 13 of the act allows the main proponent of a referendum to make follow-up submissions should a review by the commission find there are not enough signatures for a referendum proposal to pass.
Chen should drop the case and not abuse the nation’s judicial system, Tseng said.
KMT Legislator Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆) said the commission had simply become an offshoot of the DPP by allegedly trying to obstruct Huang’s referendum drive.
The commission should apologize to Huang and the public, Lai said.
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
Typhoon Krathon, a military airshow and rehearsals for Double Ten National Day celebrations might disrupt flights at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in the first 10 days of next month, the airport’s operator said yesterday. Taoyuan International Airport Corp said in a statement that it has established a response center after the Central Weather Administration issued a sea warning for Krathon, and urged passengers to remain alert to the possibility of disruptions caused by the storm in the coming days. Flight schedules might also change while the air force conducts rehearsals and holds a final airshow for Double Ten National Day, it added. Although
SEMICONDUCTORS: TSMC is able to produce 2-nanometer chips and mass production is expected to be launched by next year, the company said In leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing China is behind Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) by at least 10 years as the Taiwanese chipmaker’s manufacturing process has progressed to 2 nanometers, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said yesterday. Wu made the remarks during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee when asked by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) about a report published in August by the Chinese version of Nikkei Asia that said Taiwan’s lead over China in chip manufacturing was only three years. She asked Wu Cheng-wen if the report was an accurate
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
RSS