TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Legislative Yuan’s Internal Administration Committee convener, DPP Legislator Li Po-yi (李柏毅), on Monday exempted Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) from being questioned by TPP Legislator Lee Chen-hsiu (李貞秀), sparking strong backlash from the TPP.
Before the committee meeting convened, reporters asked Liu whether she would accept questioning from Lee, per Liberty Times. Citing government concerns over Lee’s alleged dual nationality and failure to forfeit household registration, Liu argued that Lee’s status as a lawmaker remained in dispute and stressed that she would not knowingly violate the law.
During the meeting, Li said he respected Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) decision to allow Lee to act in the capacity of a lawmaker until the issue surrounding her status is resolved, per ETtoday. However, he added that he also respected the Cabinet’s decision not to treat Lee as a lawmaker, meaning government officials would not accept questioning from her.
When Lee took the podium and attempted to question Liu and other government officials, they all remained seated. TPP Legislative Caucus Leader Vicky Chen (陳智菡) approached Lee twice during her allotted questioning time, offering suggestions on how to respond to the officials’ boycott, per Mirror Media.
After the meeting, Lee criticized Li’s decision, calling it a disregard for previous legislative caucus negotiations, per Tai Sounds. She said her questions focused on housing justice and urged the government to face legislative oversight rather than avoid it.
The TPP legislative caucus also condemned the move, saying Li acted as an agent of the ruling party rather than a neutral chair of the committee, per Storm Media. The party added that the DPP’s behavior amounted to stigmatization of Chinese spouses.
The TPP called on the government to uphold Taiwan’s democracy and rule of law.
DPP lawmakers largely focused their criticism on Chen’s assistance to Lee. DPP Legislator Lin Chu-yin (林楚瑩) said a qualified lawmaker would not need Chen to intervene, per Newtalk. DPP Legislator Wu Szu-yao (吳思瑤) echoed the sentiment, saying Li’s performance as a newly elected lawmaker outclassed Lee’s, per SETN.
Commenting on the incident, political commentator Huang Yang-ming (黃揚明) said that under the Nationality Act, which the Interior Ministry argues Lee has violated, lawmakers have one year to provide proof of renouncing foreign nationality, per NOWNews. He proposed that since the Central Election Commission has not challenged Lee’s qualifications, the executive branch’s unilateral decision to boycott her amounted to an abuse of power.
Huang warned that if the KMT were to take control of the executive branch in the future, it could similarly boycott pro–Taiwan independence lawmakers on the grounds that they were “not loyal to the ROC.” He added that since a KMT convener will chair the committee meeting next week, it remains unclear how Liu will respond if the convener allows Lee to question her.
