Undeterred by the result of a no-confidence motion against Premier Sean Chen (陳冲), which failed to pass the 113-seat Legislative Yuan, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday separately proposed an idea to recall President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on May 20 next year, the day that is set to mark his first full year in office following his re-election in January.
The Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法) stipulates that a proposal of recall should be proposed by no less than one-quarter of the total members of the legislature and agreed by no less than two-thirds and that a president or vice president who has not been in the position for one year may not be recalled.
As the no-confidence motion launched by the DPP and the TSU to topple Chen’s Cabinet failed yesterday, DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said that recall measures against Ma “have turned into a pressing issue.”
Separately, TSU Legislator Hsu Chun-hsin (許忠信) said that Ma should be recalled because he is the mastermind behind the problematic policies which have led to a slowdown in the nation’s economy.
“The result of the no-confidence motion shows the voice of Taiwanese people has been defeated by the ‘violence of the legislative majority’ of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). Even though some KMT lawmakers also agreed this Cabinet is unfit to govern, they still cast a ‘no’ vote and acquiesced to Ma’s wishes. This is a betrayal of the will of the Taiwanese people,” TSU caucus whip Huang Wen-ling (黃文玲) said.
She questioned Chen’s promise to boost the economy, saying that he has not sought to replace “the incompetent heads of the Cabinet agencies responsible for economic and labor policies.”
Chen has been invited to deliver an administrative report to the legislature on Friday. The TSU caucus said it is to continue blocking Chen from taking to the podium and will continue to do so as long as the Ma government refuses to replace Council for Economic Planning and Development Minister Yiin Chii-ming (尹啟銘), Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang (施顏祥) and Council of Labor Affairs Minister Jennifer Wang (王如玄).
Asked about the opposition parties’ plans to try to unseat Ma, Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) — head of the KMT’s policy committee — said he hopes to see reconciliation between the ruling and opposition parties.
If the legislative wrangling stops, the government would be able to put its full strength behind economic recovery efforts, he said, urging opposition parties not to boycott Chen’s administrative report or to “oppose for the sake of opposing.”
Additional reporting by CNA
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS