Lai nominates Chen Yung-hsing as Control Yuan president

President William Lai （賴清德） yesterday nominated former Taiwan Association for Human Rights chairman Chen Yung-hsing （陳永興） as president of the Control Yuan and Control Yuan member Wang Jung-chang （王榮璋） as the body’s vice president.

Lai also named 27 others, including former legislator Liao Wan-ju （廖婉汝）, to serve as Control Yuan members, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim （蕭美琴） told a news conference.

The list features a strong lineup of candidates with the professional expertise needed to investigate misconduct and impeach officials when necessary, Hsiao said.

The nominees are from a broad range of fields, including diplomacy and national defense, social welfare and labor affairs, education and culture, law, medicine and public health, and information and communications, she said.

Their diverse backgrounds would help enhance oversight of government operations and the effectiveness of the government branch, she said.

Hsiao described Chen — who previously served as a National Assembly representative, legislator, superintendent of St Mary’s Hospital Luodong and chairman of the Mennonite Social Welfare Foundation — as a key advocate for democracy, social justice and human rights in Taiwan.

Chen, 75, headed the Taiwan Association for Human Rights in the late 1980s before entering politics in the 1990s. He served as a lawmaker from 1996 to 1999.

Long regarded as an advocate of Taiwanese independence, Chen is also the founder of online media firm Taiwan People News （民報）.

Chen said he is deeply aware of the responsibility that comes with the position, and hopes to work with fellow Control Yuan members to improve government integrity and reduce corruption among civil servants.

He said he would transcend partisan politics to enhance the functions of the Control Yuan, protect human rights and reduce miscarriages of justice.

Wang, a member of the National Human Rights Commission and a former two-term legislator, helped advance legislation on the national pension system, fiscal discipline and tax reform, Hsiao said.

While at the Control Yuan, he has promoted the rights of people with disabilities and contributed to the commission’s development, she said.

Lai’s vision of a “Control Yuan for the people” is based on three principles: broad professional expertise to maximize oversight capabilities; a commitment to protecting human rights and disadvantaged groups; and robust local engagement to better understand public needs, Hsiao said.

Promoting and protecting human rights is at the core of democratic governance, she added.

The nominees must be approved by the Legislative Yuan, which is controlled by the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT） and the Taiwan People’s Party （TPP）.

Asked whether she believed the nominees would be confirmed, Hsiao said the Lai administration hopes all 29 nominees would gain legislative approval.

The nominees’ backgrounds reflect the diversity of Taiwanese society, she said, adding that she believed the future Control Yuan would be a highly professional institution capable of fully exercising its constitutional oversight powers.

After the announcement, the opposition accused the Democratic Progressive Party （DPP） of nominating a full slate of 29 members despite the DPP’s advocacy for abolishing the Control Yuan.

If the DPP truly believes the Control Yuan has no value, it should introduce a constitutional amendment to dissolve it, KMT caucus deputy secretary-general Hsu Yu-jen （許宇甄） said, adding that the Lai administration should freeze all nominations in the interim rather than shouting for its abolition while continuing to hand out political rewards.

The DPP campaigned on dissolving the Control Yuan, but has failed to take any action since it secured power, TPP caucus convener Chen Ching-lung （陳清龍） said, adding that his party’s stance on abolishing the Control Yuan would remain unchanged, regardless of the nominees.

Hsiao said that the Control Yuan is a vital constitutional organ with statutory powers.

As the nation’s highest supervisory body, it exercises constitutional powers of censure and impeachment, while also shouldering the important mission of the commission, she said.

The president and the Legislative Yuan are obligated to uphold their constitutional duty until the Constitution is amended or the Control Yuan is abolished, she said.

The six-year tenure of Control Yuan members is to expire on July 31 and regulations say that their replacements are to take office on Aug. 1.