PANDERING TO BEIJING:
China will be ‘very pleased’ as the opposition slashed budgets for security units, including fighting online attacks, the premier said
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By Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard / Reuters
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said the government faced a crisis in day-to-day operations, including national security, because of large cuts to this year’s budget proposed by opposition parties, who have cited a need to cut waste.
Although William Lai (賴清德) won the presidential election last year, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its majority in the legislature, giving the opposition the most seats and legislative control that includes spending proposals.
The budget proposal, which the Cabinet approved in August last year, set government spending for this year at NT$3.1325 trillion (US$95.48 billion) with projected revenues of NT$3.1534 trillion — both record highs — working out to a surplus of NT$20.9 billion.
Photo: CNA
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), together with the smaller Taiwan People’s Party, on Friday cut NT$93.98 billion from the central government’s general budget, saying they were targeting waste.
Billions of New Taiwan dollars more are projected to be cut during the budget review yesterday and today.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the voting on the budget in the Legislative Yuan yesterday, Cho called it an unprecedented “budget storm” that would hurt government functions from national security to healthcare.
Photo: CNA
“Please withdraw all proposals that would paralyze the government and impact national security,” Cho said. “It will lead to administrative departments finding it hard to operate, and even basic tasks will be hard to carry out.”
“A hostile China will be very pleased,” Cho added, pointing to cuts to security units, including the Ministry of Digital Affairs, which tackles an average of 2.4 million cyberattacks a day, most of which Taiwan says are launched by Chinese cyberforces.
Over the weekend, the Ministry of National Defense urged the opposition to rethink a 15 percent cut to its overseas travel budget, which it said would have a “very bad impact” on the military’s engagements with allies.
At press time last night, the opposition-controlled legislature slashed to zero the NT$100 billion budget proposed by the Ministry of Economics Affairs to subsidize Taiwan Power Co’s deficit to zero.
It also slashed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ media and policy promotion expenses by more than NT$110 million, while freezing 50 percent of its operating expenses — or NT$3.76 billion — and cutting NT$400 million from its “budget for enhancing bilateral and multilateral cooperation.”
Lawmakers also cut about 20 percent, or NT$130 million, of the budget for the Mainland Affairs Council, and froze nearly NT$100 million.
They chopped 90 percent of the budget for the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee, slashing the proposed NT$52.5 million to NT$5.01 million.
Additionally, they cut the Ministry of Agriculture’s media expenses by NT$85 million, and its foreign and domestic business trip budget by NT$34 million and NT$78 million respectively, while freezing 30 percent of its operating expenses.
During an interim break after rounds of voting on hundreds of motions, DPP legislators gathered at chamber floor, chanting slogans and holding placards that read: “Safeguard Taiwan, Defend Fiscal Budget” and “By Paralyzing the Government, Every Citizen is a Victim” to protest the KMT and the TPP’s actions.
Separately, DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said the opposition parties had been “ruthless” in their push to slash the budget.
“The KMT and the TPP are collaborating to kill this country. Public opinion is boiling over, as people are angry and coming out to organize recall drives [against KMT lawmakers]. The KMT is on the path to its own destruction,” he said.
Additional reporting by staff writer, Jason Pan and CNA
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