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KMT caucus to push parliamentary reform bills
The Kuomintang (KMT) has unveiled 32 pieces of legislation it is hoping to put forward as priorities during the current legislative session, including six bills related to parliamentary reform.
One of the parliamentary reform bills seeks to regularize the annual State of the Nation Address by the president, while another will reexamine the legislature's role in the appointment of government personnel nominated by the president.
The KMT's legislative caucus says it plans to introduce a bill to allow the election of the legislative speaker and deputy speaker by means of an open vote, rather than by secret vote, as is the current practice. And according to the party caucus, it will also introduce a priority bill to make contempt of the parliament a legal offense.
KMT Chairman Eric Chu says the proposals were compiled by a party think tank and are still under discussion but will be adopted if a consensus is reached.
The think tank has also proposed amending the Court Organization Act to create a special investigation unit under the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to tackle major crimes, including corruption among top government officials.
