TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's political landscape grew increasingly fractious Monday (April 28) as the leader of a pivotal centrist party demanded greater transparency before supporting the government's massive economic relief package. Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌), chairman of the Taiwan People's Party (TPP, 民眾黨), a relatively new political force that holds crucial swing votes in the legislature, pledged conditional support for industry assistance but insisted on comprehensive impact studies and detailed implementation plans. His demands came as Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) appeared before the Legislative Yuan (立法院), Taiwan's parliament, to defend a newly approved NT$410 billion (US$12.6 billion) special budget proposal.
The contested legislation, approved last Thursday by the Executive Yuan (行政院), Taiwan's cabinet, aims to strengthen the island's resilience against mounting international pressures through a three-pronged approach. The budget allocates NT$150 billion (US$4.6 billion) toward homeland security measures, NT$93 billion (US$2.9 billion) for economic resilience initiatives, and NT$167 billion (US$5.1 billion) to bolster social support systems. During his parliamentary appearance, Premier Cho defended the controversial plan, noting that industry representatives had specifically requested stable electricity prices to prevent companies from facing simultaneous financial pressures from rising tariffs and energy costs.
Opposition to the package intensified when TPP Legislator Chang Chi-kai (張啓楷) launched a pointed attack on provisions earmarking substantial subsidies for Taiwan Power Company (台灣電力公司), the state-owned utility, calling these allocations "a severe violation" of established fiscal discipline and the Budget Act (預算法), Taiwan's primary legislation governing public expenditures. Chang characterized the entire proposal as unjustifiably inflated. Party chairman Huang echoed these concerns, expressing dismay at what he described as the government's inadequate preparation, noting that officials had presented merely "a three-page document containing nine articles" to justify the unprecedented NT$410 billion (US$12.6 billion) expenditure.
The TPP chairman broadened his critique to encompass what he characterized as a troubling pattern by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP, 民進黨) of rushing special appropriations through parliament without sufficient planning or transparency. Huang contended that citizens remain skeptical about whether the proposed expenditures actually address the economic challenges posed by rising international tariffs, and he insisted that proper impact assessments — still not completed — should form the foundation of any major spending package. He concluded with a firm legislative warning, asserting that items properly belonging in the regular annual budget were being inappropriately "smuggled" into emergency legislation, and pledged that TPP lawmakers would withhold their crucial support under such circumstances. ★