Lawmakers yesterday continued to argue over legislative oversight reforms pushed through in May after the Constitutional Court on Friday ruled that most of the amendments expanding the legislature’s power to oversee the executive branch of government are unconstitutional, including those that would have given legislators broader investigative powers.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) led a group of KMT legislators, including KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Szu-ming (林思銘) and KMT caucus deputy secretary-general Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇), in a protest outside the legislative chamber in Taipei, where they chanted slogans such as “For Republic of China” (ROC) and “We will not surrender.”
Fu said the ruling “officially drove the democratic ROC of the people, by the people and for the people back to the Qing Dynasty.”
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
He called Friday a day of national disgrace, adding that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Constitutional Court justices had invalidated the human rights entitled to all citizens of democratic countries.
Despite the ruling, the KMT caucus would continue to strive for democratic values, Fu said.
“We will neither succumb to President William Lai’s (賴清德) despotic administration, nor revise the laws pursuant to the constitutional ruling made by ‘green’ justices,” he said, referring to the color associated with the DPP.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
While the Presidential Office said that Lai would deliver a report on national policies at the legislature in accordance with the ruling, Fu questioned whether the president would properly answer legislators’ questions.
“If he is not willing to answer legislators’ questions, he would be better off promoting his policies at home on Facebook or through livestreaming,” he said.
“The KMT caucus does not welcome Lai’s report on his policies at the legislature. Lai should not disgrace the legislature with his presence,” he added.
Meanwhile, the DPP caucus yesterday convened a news conference to address the constitutional ruling.
They asked members of opposition parties to immediately refrain from slandering justices, as well as initiate a review of the legislature’s power of consent in accordance with the constitutional ruling.
The legislature’s investigation task force and the documents it has access to have been declared unconstitutional and should be terminated, the DPP caucus said.
The amendments to the Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法) should be suspended while the review is under way, it said.
The legislature should also immediately revise the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法) in line with the ruling, it added.
In response to Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Huang Kuo-chang’s (黃國昌) remark that the ruling has made the legislature “a tiger without teeth,” DPP caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said the legislature was allowed to keep its “teeth,” but it could not act like “an insane dog going around biting people.”
The legislature still has its power, but it should be held accountable to prevent abuse, she said, adding that the DPP is willing to cooperate with the KMT and TPP to revise the bills to be legitimate and constitutional.
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
The Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency yesterday launched a gift box to market honey “certified by a Formosan black bear” in appreciation of a beekeeper’s amicable interaction with a honey-thieving bear. Beekeeper Chih Ming-chen (池明鎮) in January inspected his bee farm in Hualien County’s Jhuosi Township (卓溪) and found that more than 20 beehives had been destroyed and many hives were eaten, with bear droppings and paw prints near the destroyed hives, the agency said. Chih returned to the farm to move the remaining beehives away that evening when he encountered a Formosan black bear only 20m away, the agency said. The bear
Chinese embassy staffers attempted to interrupt an award ceremony of an international tea competition in France when the organizer introduced Taiwan and displayed the Republic of China flag, a Taiwanese tea farmer said in an interview published today. Hsieh Chung-lin (謝忠霖), chief executive of Juxin Tea Factory from Taichung's Lishan (梨山) area, on Dec. 2 attended the Teas of the World International Contest held at the Peruvian embassy in Paris. Hsieh was awarded a special prize for his Huagang Snow Source Tea by the nonprofit Agency for the Valorization of Agricultural Products (AVPA). During the ceremony, two Chinese embassy staffers in attendance
RSS