A group of legislators today proposed a no-confidence vote against Premier Sean Chen, to which the Executive Yuan responded that the premier's foremost mission at present is to lead government agencies and stabilize national development. Chen believes that with inter-agency cooperation to boost the economy, remove trade barriers, utilize human resources and work with the private sector, Taiwan's national competitiveness will be raised, and the country will have a strong foundation for sustainable development.
The 10 reasons given for the no-confidence motion and the Executive Yuan's responses to them are as follows:
1. Constitutional system in disarray
Although the Constitution of the Republic of China does not specify the Executive Yuan's authorities, it does oblige the Executive Yuan to present policy statements and administrative reports to the Legislature. It is clear that the Executive Yuan, as the country's highest administrative organ, is responsible to the Legislative Yuan.
In addition, the Constitution delineated the Executive Yuan as a collegial system, with a premier, a vice premier, and a number of ministers, commission chairpersons and ministers without portfolio. Besides the premier himself, the above officials must be appointed by the president of the republic upon the recommendation of the premier. Along with this constitutional division of authority over appointments, the president consults with the premier in personnel selections, making their decisions in the best interests of the country. Therefore, the Democratic Progressive Party's claims that the president is expanding his power at will and that the premier is acting as his puppet are unfounded.
2. The 'economic Cabinet' has led Taiwan into economic chaos
The Executive Yuan has not only established a task force to formulate policy responses to the European debt crisis and domestic problems such as an imbalanced industry structure, it has also made short-term investments and adopted measures to immediately address the export slowdown.
Moreover, the Executive Yuan has formulated an economic stimulus plan to ensure the sustainable and healthy development of Taiwan's economy in the short, medium and long term. As the basis for future major policies, it focuses on changing the structure of the economy in the mid- to long-term by making institutional adjustments and relaxing regulations. The plan also incorporates the conclusions reached at the five economic symposiums with private sector leaders in August and September, which were hosted by Premier Chen.
3. The 'peace of mind Cabinet' has driven fuel and electricity price hikes
The Electricity Act requires the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) to set electricity prices and the Legislative Yuan to approve calculation formulas. The current formula, approved by the Legislature in 1960, is in accordance with international accounting standards, and the Legislature has never requested an adjustment. The latest two rounds of electricity price increases are based on this formula.
Domestic electricity cost NT$2.76 per kilowatt-hour in 1982 and NT$2.6 per kilowatt-hour in May 2012. While the past 30 years have seen sharp price hikes in crude oil and coal, which are major sources of electricity, the price of electricity in Taiwan has not increased but instead decreased. Therefore, the government hopes to adopt a system where electricity prices can accurately and reasonably reflect fluctuations in the market price of fuel.
4. Blind reliance on mainland Chinese capital with disregard for the economy's and industry's well-being
According to the MOEA's Department of Investment Services, Taiwanese businesses in mainland China invested in 45 projects in Taiwan from January to August this year. Their contribution of NT$41.9 billion (US$1.4 billion) so far already represents 83.8 percent of the entire year's target investment amount.
One company that sees the great business opportunities available due to the signing of the Cross-Straits Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement is first-tier forklift truck maker Tailift, which plans to invest NT$1 billion (US$33.3 million) to build a new factory in Nantou.
Since the island was opened to mainland investment over three years ago, mainland investors have put US$309 million into 284 projects in Taiwan as of July 2012, according to the Executive Yuan. Results have been encouraging: increased funds for Taiwan industries and financial markets, robust export growth from cross-strait business cooperation, the expansion of mainland markets for Taiwanese enterprises and the creation of 5,126 jobs in Taiwan by enterprises with mainland Chinese investment as of June this year.
5. Well-being index not created, misery index through the roof
Well-being is difficult to measure given the host of variables and influencing factors, and its definition varies from person to person. Nevertheless, the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics announced in February 2012 it would base the national index on the "Your Better Life Index" framework of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a gauge created after years of rigorous research and international debate.
Regarding the misery index, which is the sum of the unemployment and inflation rates, from this year's second quarter onwards, heavy rainfall and typhoons have sent vegetable prices soaring and pushed up the consumer price index (CPI). In June, the misery index rose to 5.98 percent (the CPI rose by 1.77 percent year-on-year while the unemployment rate was 4.21 percent). This figure was higher than South Korea's 5.4 percent but far below Singapore's 7.3 percent and Hong Kong's 6.9 percent. Besides, heavy storms have a short-term impact on prices, and the Executive Yuan's price stability task force has implemented measures to alleviate price increases. The misery index is expected to drop once produce supplies return to normal levels.
6. High unemployment and low pay for youth
Among member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the 2011 unemployment rate for youth 15-24 years of age rose to 16.19 percent on average, with France at 22.13 percent, the U.K. at 21.05 percent, Italy at 29.03 percent, Canada at 14.16 percent, the U.S. at 17.28 percent, Japan at 8.19 percent and South Korea at 9.61 percent. The jobless rate among youth is also two to three times that of the general OECD population. Taiwan's situation is similar; its youth unemployment rate of 12.47 percent is 2.84 times higher than the 4.31 percent of the general population.
Creating jobs for youth has always been a matter of priority for the government. Toward that end, the Executive Yuan has rolled out various measures including the Young Talent Training Program, Occupational Training Subsidy Program, and Youth Employment Treasure Hunting Map. These programs integrate job resources for young people, utilizing physical and virtual channels to provide job-matching services. Also, the Industrial Talent Investment Program offers each trainee subsidies of up to NT$70,000 (US$2,333) over a three-year period.
7. Justice system skewed by politics
The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) does not favor the ruling party over the opposition and respects the authority and judgment of its subordinate agencies. As a principle, the MOJ never intervenes, interferes or provides guidance in cases conducted by its prosecutors offices, investigation departments and anti-corruption units, but rather requires them to enforce the law objectively, follow the evidence, abide by proper procedures, and prosecute criminals fully. Justice has no limits, nor is there a time frame. As long as the evidence is present, a defendant will be prosecuted vigorously regardless of his or her status, position or party affiliation.
8. Food safety declining, citizens' health disregarded
The nation's food safety policies are made based on scientific evidence and international regulations, taking into account various risk assessments as well as the dietary habits of citizens. For instance, Taiwan's beef import agreement with the U.S. conforms to the regulations of the World Organization for Animal Health, which permit conditional import of beef containing safe levels of ractopamine. Also, setting maximum residue levels of the feed additive is different from permitting beef from countries affected by mad cow disease; the two matters are unrelated.
In another example, the ROC government enforced stringent inspection and controls on Japanese imports immediately after the Fukushima nuclear accident, prohibiting the entry of food products with unsafe levels of radiation. Taiwan's consumers were protected as radiation contaminated foods were kept out of the country.
9. Administration infighting and indecisiveness causing social discontent
The government listens closely to public opinion when formulating policies in order to understand citizens' needs and expectations. Programs are crafted from the perspective of the people to minimize dissatisfaction during the implementation process.
10. Disrespect for the Legislature, violations of administration neutrality
As leader of the highest administrative branch of the government, Premier Chen respects the authority of independent government agencies and has never interfered with their operations. During the nomination process for new commissioners of the National Communications Commission (NCC), the Executive Yuan followed all regulations in the NCC Organization Act, submitting information on nominees to the Legislature for review.
As for top government officials who also hold party posts, they are political appointees who must step down with the Cabinet when the party loses power. In the world of partisan politics, a government official engaging in partisan activities or holding a party post to build support is common in a functioning democracy. As such, a political appointee does not violate administrative neutrality by taking up a non-permanent post in a party.
The Executive Yuan stated that since the no-confidence vote is already in motion, Premier Chen will wait for the results of Legislature's proceedings concerning his status. In the meantime, the premier will continue performing his duties and carry out the work promoting the national agenda.