Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇) yesterday called for a Cabinet reshuffle, one day after she and 23 other KMT lawmakers successfully fended off recall campaigns against them.
Similar to many KMT legislators who retained their legislative seats, Wang took a victory lap yesterday in her district to thank her constituents for voting against the bid to recall her.
Wang said she observed an obvious rift between members of the general public due to recent events surrounding the recall campaign, and that now that the results were in, the ruling and opposition parties needed to work together to mend the divide.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
The opposition-controlled legislature recently passed a number of bills that benefit the public, she said, but not only has the Executive Yuan not reviewed them, it has adopted a confrontational attitude.
She also criticized the government’s performance on several recent issues, such as trade and tariff issues with the US, and said that the response to the typhoon in southern Taiwan was subpar, and that there were many calls for a Cabinet reshuffle.
A Cabinet shake-up is needed to take political responsibility for the defeat, she said, adding that given the challenges Taiwan is facing, the new faces should not be people without experience, party loyalists who need a job or people who are brought in hastily, simply as a show of political responsibility.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said she expected opposition parties to make assertions that turn the civic campaign into a confrontation between political parties and force officials to step down for the sake of “political responsibility.”
The ruling party would face the result of the recall campaign, she said, adding that taking “responsibility” was not just a matter of talk, but of actions taken to lead the country.
The DPP would not dance to the tune of the opposition, she added.
On Saturday, all 24 lawmakers of the KMT who were up for recall survived their recall votes, ensuring that the KMT, along with Taiwan People’s Party lawmakers, would maintain opposition control of the legislature.
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