The Executive Yuan is to countersign bills passed earlier this month reversing cuts to civil servants’ pensions, after which it would immediately file a petition for a constitutional judgement, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said today.
The legislature on Dec. 12 passed amendments suspending cuts to civil servants’ pensions, reversing a fiscal reform that aimed to reduce the government deficit.
Today is the deadline for the president to promulgate the amendments to the Civil Servants Retirement, Discharge and Pensions Act (公務人員退休資遣撫卹法) and the Public School Employee Retirement, Discharge and Pensions Act (公立學校教職員退休資遣撫卹條例).
Photo courtesy of the Executive Yuan
Although the amendments contravene Article 70 of the Constitution and the separation of powers, and undermine the principle of adequate legislative deliberation, the Executive Yuan would fulfill its duties by countersigning the bill, allowing it to take effect, Cho was quoted as saying by Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) at a post-Cabinet meeting news conference.
With the Constitutional Court resuming operations, the Executive Yuan would immediately seek a constitutional interpretation, Cho said.
The court had been paralyzed for about a year after changes to the Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法) required a quorum of 10 grand justices to take part in deliberations, despite there currently being only eight justices on the bench.
However, the court on Friday last week ruled those amendments unconstitutional, restoring its functioning.
Cho said that he hopes a final ruling could be reached through constitutional procedures and that constitutional dignity would be upheld.
The power to refuse to countersign is a constitutional authority vested in the premier, he said.
If future legislation were to undermine the constitutional system, weaken national defense or disrupt fiscal discipline in an irreparable way, the Executive Yuan would not abandon this authority, he said.
However, as long as there is a functioning legislature that does not compromise national security or fiscal stability, and the Constitutional Court remains operational, the Executive Yuan would not resort to refusing to countersign as a routine measure, he added.
Opposition lawmakers are seeking to impeach Cho over his refusal to countersign changes to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) passed by last month.
Additional reporting by Jonathan Chin
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