President Lai open to addressing Legislature but not taking questions

Taipei, Dec. 29 (CNA) Taiwan President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) said Sunday that he is willing to deliver a state-of-the-nation address in the Legislature but will not submit to questioning by lawmakers, as that would be a violation of the Constitution.

The Constitution and relevant interpretations by the Constitutional Court allow a president to report to the Legislature via established procedures but do not permit legislative interpellation of the head of state, Lai said in a television interview.

He was commenting on the current stalemate in the Legislature over a proposed eight-year special defense budget of NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.81 billion), which has been blocked four times by opposition lawmakers, who have been calling on Lai to answer questions in the Legislature.

The opposition lawmakers are fully responsible for the stalemate, Lai said, noting that they have publicly expressed support in both Taiwan and the international community for higher defense spending, even as they have been blocking the review of the proposed defense budget.

The president also expressed concerns over a proposed meeting between Kuomintang (KMT) Chairperson Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), which reportedly would be subject to certain preconditions, including assurances that the KMT would not allow the passage of the defense bill or national security legislation and would abandon its anti-communist stance.

While the KMT has denied that there were such preconditions, Lai said, its continued obstruction without justification raises public doubts.

It would be hard for the public to believe that a meeting between Cheng and Xi would not be subject to preconditions, Lai said.

He also criticized the opposition-led Legislature for what he called its procedural abuses, including its decisions to skip the committee stage and fast-track controversial bills to a second reading and its refusal to review the bills on arms procurement and the central government budget.

On the issue of the legislative motion passed last Friday to initiate impeachment proceedings against him, Lai said the opposition parties will ultimately face public judgment, as they are seeking to remove Taiwan's democratically elected president, while praising Russian President Vladimir Putin and embracing China's leader Xi.

On the question of cross-strait relations, Lai said Taiwan maintains goodwill toward China, as evidenced by its disaster relief donations and the fact that more than 2 million Taiwanese travel there every year.