Legislator Questions Taipei Mayor's Stance on Abolishing Control Yuan

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an and Research, Development and Evaluation Commission Chairman Yin Wei. (File photo)

The Presidential Office recently announced a list of 29 nominees for Control Yuan members. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an expressed his stance yesterday, advocating for cross-party consensus to amend the constitution and abolish the Control Yuan. In response, Legislator Lin Chun-hsien posted on Facebook today, sarcastically praising Chiang, who usually focuses on municipal affairs, for suddenly taking a stand on national policy issues and daring to touch upon the abolition of the Control Yuan, which he finds "deeply admirable."

Lin sarcastically wrote on Facebook, "Perhaps it's to escape the shadow of 'Yin Wei Da' (RDEC Chairman Yin Wei), or perhaps he saw the momentum of KMT Chairperson Cheng Li-wen and fears that if he doesn't speak up soon, the 2028 presidential seat will be out of reach. Whatever the motivation, it is very brave."

Shifting his tone, Lin questioned whether the former legislator Chiang was not one of those who prevented the constitutional amendment to abolish the Examination and Control Yuan from being sent to the Legislative Yuan. "To help Mayor Chiang recall the deeds of Legislator Chiang, I will explain again. After all, I was there at the time, and my memory should be more accurate than Yin Wei's tablet."

Lin pointed out that after former President Tsai Ing-wen was re-elected, she declared her intention to promote constitutional reform. In September 2020, the Legislative Yuan established a constitutional reform committee, which included seven proposals related to the abolition of the Examination and Control Yuan, all proposed by DPP legislators. The DPP has long advocated for the abolition of both the Examination and Control Yuan, returning to normal separation of powers, rather than creating a constitutional miracle of "four powers" by doing only half the job.

Lin sarcastically remarked, "As for why the constitutional amendment to abolish the Examination and Control Yuan did not even pass the referendum stage? That has to be asked of the opposition party legislators at the time, including Legislator Chiang."

Lin stated frankly that for a constitutional amendment to be proposed, at least three-quarters of the legislators must be present, and three-quarters of those present must agree to proceed to a referendum. The DPP caucus in the previous term had only 62 members, and to advance a constitutional amendment out of the Legislative Yuan, support from the opposition parties was necessary. He further questioned, "If Mayor Chiang wants to abolish the Control Yuan, why did Legislator Chiang at the time not agree to the constitutional amendment? Instead, he blocked it along with the KMT caucus? This question, I'm afraid, Yin Wei cannot answer for you; it truly depends on Mayor Chiang himself."

Related news:

Chiang Calls for Abolition of Control Yuan, Urges KMT and TPP to Reject Nominees

Chiang Wan-an Calls for Abolition of Control Yuan, Shen Po-yang: I Hope Chiang Returns to Discussing Municipal Affairs

Promoting Constitutional Amendment to Abolish Examination and Control Yuan, Legislators: Hope the Legislative Yuan's Consent Power Exercise is the Last Time