Civil servants would face problems administering the 38 projects fast-tracked in a motion by opposition parties, who have now stalled the general budget for 147 days, Cabinet officials said yesterday.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) urged opposition parties to review and deliberate the entire NT$3.35 trillion (US$105.98 billion) budget instead of fast-tracking a small group of 38 programs, equaling only 2.4 percent of the full budget.
On Friday last week, lawmakers of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) forwarded a bill to fund the select programs directly to a second reading.
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
The legislature yesterday convened cross-party negotiations to discuss the 38 programs, but proceedings halted when DPP lawmakers left the room after speaking and ministry representatives expressed objections to discussing the bill rather than the entire budget.
Cabinet spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) told a news conference after the weekly Cabinet meeting that the opposition parties believed they could push for review and approval this legislative session to disburse funding for the programs they prioritized, but the motion passed last week was only a “resolution,” which lacks legal authority to force civil servants to implement them.
“It was voted on as a resolution by opposition legislators. It was not a budget bill that passed a third reading, so civil servants would face issues when asked to implement the programs,” Lee said.
“Every budget item and its funding is important, so programs should not be prioritized,” she added.
“We do not understand why the opposition parties do not follow the legislative process for the budget,” she said.
When the proper legislative process is followed and a third reading is completed, the funds can be allocated, allowing Taiwan to make progress on new construction projects and economic developments, Lee said.
The prioritized items include a TPass public transportation program, subsidy programs for young families, housing assistance for young couples, flood control construction projects and others favored by the opposition, the DPP said.
“The 38 programs are in the general budget, which the Cabinet submitted to the legislature on Aug. 29 last year,” it said.
TPP deputy caucus whip Chang Chi-kai (張?楷) said that the DPP once emphasized the importance of budgets for the TPass system and flood control programs, but now that the opposition has offered solutions, it has done an about-face.
KMT deputy secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said that the government failed in its duty to compile a budget according to the law, making its proposed budget illegal.
The smaller budget to fund the 38 programs was compiled according to Article 54 of the Budget Act (預算法), Lin said, adding that the government should quickly compile a new budget for the legislature to deliberate.
Additional reporting by Chen Cheng-yu and CNA
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