The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus yesterday said it is seeking a constitutional interpretation and an injunction against amendments to the pension bill passed by the opposition-
dominated legislature last month.
The legislature on Dec. 12 approved amendments suspending cuts to civil servants’ pensions, reversing a fiscal reform that aimed to reduce the government deficit.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
The amendments would result in an earlier-than-anticipated bankruptcy of the Public Service Pension Fund, and challenge the principles of separation of powers and the rule of law, the DPP said.
The caucus’ move came after that of the Executive Yuan and the Examination Yuan.
The Cabinet last month filed a petition for constitutional interpretation and a temporary injunction regarding the amendments, arguing that there were significant procedural flaws, contravening the constitutional requirement for proper legislative processes.
The substance of the amendments also contradicts the Constitution, infringes upon the Executive Yuan’s authority to formulate budgets, and would lead to the early bankruptcy of the retirement fund, it added.
Earlier this month, the Examination Yuan also filed a petition for constitutional interpretation, saying the amended bills would cause the retirement fund to be exhausted prematurely, undermining the sustainable management of the fund, and violating the principles of generational justice and public good.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
BACK TO WINTER: A strong continental cold air mass would move south on Tuesday next week, bringing colder temperatures to northern and central Taiwan A tropical depression east of the Philippines could soon be upgraded to be the first tropical storm of this year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the next cold air mass is forecast to arrive on Monday next week. CWA forecaster Cheng Jie-ren (鄭傑仁) said the first tropical depression of this year is over waters east of the Philippines, about 1,867km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), and could strengthen into Tropical Storm Nokaen by early today. The system is moving slowly from northwest to north, and is expected to remain east of the Philippines with little chance of affecting Taiwan,
The military yesterday said it has located the flight data recorder, or black box, of an F-16V jet that disappeared off eastern Taiwan earlier this month, and it would soon deploy a salvage team to try to retrieve it. Air Force Command Headquarters said that while it had pinned down the location of the black box, it was still searching for the aircraft’s sole pilot, air force Captain Hsin Po-yi (辛柏毅). Without providing details, the air force said it had located the black box days after detecting some intermittent signals and would now engage a team of professionals to retrieve it. The air
RSS