The Legislative Yuan held extensive discussions today on an April 18 proposal from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to extend the current legislative session for two months until July 31, leading to an exchange of sharp criticisms between both sides.
DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said “everyone knows” why the KMT is seeking to extend the session, given their fear of recalls which have targeted dozens of KMT legislators.
The DPP would support extending the session for bills that benefit the country and people’s livelihoods but not for the benefit of the KMT, Wu said.
Photo: Taipei Times file
While the country faces tariffs from the US and people hope for change, DPP lawmakers want to take vacations, KMT Legislator Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇) countered today.
The DPP has yet to grant Taiwan's workers more holiday leave, yet wants to take a two-month vacation, Wang added.
This would be the longest extension in the history of the Legislative Yuan, DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said on Facebook.
While the Legislative Yuan is not in session, lawmakers continue to work, Wang Ting-yu said, such as studying bills, meeting their constituents and advocating for local development.
Lawmakers who only work when they are in session “have a very easy life,” Wang Ting-yu added.
The KMT proposal stems from the party’s fear of the recall movement and intention to shelter under the “protective umbrella” of the Legislative Yuan, DPP Legislator Jean Kuo (郭昱晴) said today on Facebook, asking which bills justify an extended session.
Furthermore, the Legislative Yuan can seek to call an extraordinary session rather than extend the current session for two more months, Kuo said.
Although the KMT has said that the extension is about discussing people’s livelihoods and responding to US tariffs, it is actually about legislators “hiding” behind judicial immunity and their involvement in criminal cases, Kuo said.
This move undermines people’s trust in the Legislative Yuan, Kuo added.
The government cannot be used as a tool for legislators and political parties to pursue their own interests, she said.
Taiwan People's Party Legislator Chang Chi-kai (張啓楷) accused DPP lawmakers of acting like “bandits,” blaming the party for delaying bills and carrying out the large-scale recall movement.
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