啟動還我公投行動 國民黨推動「公投綁大選」公投
國民黨主席江啟臣，今（18）日偕同文傳會主委王育敏、革實院長羅智強、負數票協會理事長張天鷞、核能流言終結者兼以核養綠公投發起人黃士修共同召開記者會，宣示推動「公投綁大選」公投，並由江主席擔任領銜人，羅院長擔任行動執行長。
江主席表示，民進黨自2016年上台後，在國會多數暴力致使人民聲音無法伸張，更加突顯「直接民主」的重要性，同時，這也是過去在野的民進黨，一向主張、追求的價值；2017年公投法修法規定「公投應綁大選」，當時蔡英文總統說「打破鳥籠，還權於民，這是人民作主的歷史時刻」，結果蔡總統只讓人民作主一年半的時間，之後就變成「民進黨作主」；民進黨上台後，只因為2018年公投結果不如己意，就沒收公投，甚至是從「鳥龍公投」變到「鐵籠公投」，違背自己爭取三十多年的價值，傷害人民的權益。
江主席指出，今日提出的公投案就是要面對民主危機、打破鐵籠，讓公投權利重新回到人民手中。其主文是「公民投票案公告成立後一個月起至六個月內，若該期間內有全國性選舉時，公民投票應與該選舉同日舉行」，由他親自擔任領銜人，並呼籲人民一起來連署。
羅智強指出，「視公投綁大選如洪水猛獸」、「全世界所有公投幾乎都是綁大選」二句話就是陳其邁說的。他質疑民進黨蔡同榮、林義雄過去將公投視為一生職志，這樣的價值，如今竟然被民進黨親自踐踏？他強調，推動公投綁大選不只是國民黨的事，也是全台灣的事。接下來也將會一起走遍全台灣，透過街講、座談、連署，從街頭喚起台灣的民主聲音。
負數票協會理事長張天鷞則表示，他今天很高興看到國民黨願意帶頭推動公投修法。並指出，全世界的公投，絕大多數都是跟大選綁在一起，加州、瑞士，這些最先進的民主典範，加州是規定要綁大選，瑞士雖然不綁大選，但沒有同意票的最低門檻，這都是台灣應該要效法之處。
黃士修則以自己連署通過的「核四公投」為例，核四公投在去年成案，但是立法院馬上修法，脫鉤大選，讓核四公投被延後到2021年，才能投票。現在公投法規定的同意票門檻是五百萬票，但是2018年有六成支持度的「以核養綠」公投，綁九合一選舉都只有六百萬張同意票，如果不綁大選，是否還能通過？他更是不敢抱持樂觀態度。
黃士修不解地問「為什麼民進黨這麼害怕核四公投？」他也樂見國民黨為全台灣人民爭取公投權力，因為這個「直接民主」的價值，過去民進黨追求了三十幾年，卻在上台之後自己丟掉，而如今是國民黨要去把他撿回來。黃士修補充說明，他將聯合其他公民團體，持續推動公投法的修法，包括不在籍投票、電子連署、以及同意票門檻的取消等等。
王育敏表示，蔡英文總統說全面執政必定腐壞的劇本不會成真，但我們所看到的民進黨在國會的全面執政，其後果與代價就是貪腐、濫權事件一再發生。台灣什麼時候變成限縮言論自由的社會？台灣的民主什麼時候變成民進黨的總統、行政院長說了算？她強調，民進黨的全面執政濫權到極致，台灣的制衡監督力量現在受到嚴重挑戰，面對民進黨一黨獨大的濫權，更需要台灣民主、人民的力量，其中公投併大選更是落實直接民主、還權於民的重要方法。
過去蘇貞昌曾說：「公投綁大選，可以節省經費，也讓民意可以直接表現」。公投單獨舉行，約需8億元的經費，綁大選則可以幫人民省下這筆費用。王育敏感嘆，「蘇貞昌過去說的是對的，為什麼現在做的卻是錯的？」
為捍衛人民公投權，國民黨將正式展開「還我公投運動」，走上街頭，由主席江啟臣領銜丶革實院長羅智強任行動執行長，啟動「恢復公投綁大選」公投連署行動。未來，國民黨也將結合各項民生、社會、環保議題，結合立法院黨團、野台直播等，把議題街頭化、讓民主制衡街頭化，從草根建構國民黨的在野力量。
Launching the “Give
Back My Referenda” Operation, KMT Pushes Forward “Tie Referenda to General
Elections” Referendum
Today (August 18th),
Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Johnny Chiang, along with Culture and Communications
Committee Director Alicia Wang (王育敏), Institute of
Revolutionary Practice Director Lo Chih-chiang（羅智強）,
Negative Vote Association Director-General Tien Shang Chang（張天鷞）, and founding member of the Sustainability via
Nuclear Power referendum Huang Shih-Hsiu（黃士修）, jointly
convened a press conference, pledging to push forward a "Tie Referenda to
General Elections" referendum with Chairman Chiang in the leading role and
Director Lo as Chief Operating Officer.
Chairman Chiang stated
that ever since the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) took power in 2016, the
voice of the people has not been heard in the Legislative Yuan due to the DPP's
tyranny of the majority, exposing the importance of direct democracy even more.
Furthermore, when the DPP was not in power, it always advocated for and pursued
direct democracy. The 2017 referenda law amended the provision, stating that
"Referenda should be tied to the general elections." At that time,
President Tsai Ying-wen said, "Break the birdcage, return power to the
people. At this juncture of history, the people make the decisions." Yet
in the end, President Tsai allowed the people to be their own masters for merely
a year and a half; afterwards, it became "the DPP makes the
decisions." Simply because the 2018 referendum results were not what they
expected, the DPP turned the "birdcage referendum" into the
"iron-cage referendum," contradicting the values that they themselves
fought for for over 30 years and damaging the rights and interests of the
people.
Chairman Chiang pointed
out that raising the issue of referenda today is to confront a crisis of
democracy and to break the iron cage, giving the right to referenda back to the
people. The question of the referendum is as follows: "If there is a
national election within one to six months after this referendum case
announcement, should a referendum be held on the same day?”
Since he personally takes the leading role, he is also appealing to the people
to cosign with him together.
Lo Chih-chiang pointed
out that Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-Mai said the following sentences: “Tying referenda
to the general election is a disaster” and “Most referenda in the world are
tied to general elections.” Lo questions how the DPP could go so far as to now
trample the dreams of Chai Trong-rong and Lim Gi-hiong, two DPP seniors who upheld
referenda as their lifelong pursuit. Lo emphasized that pushing for the tying
of referenda and general elections is not only the KMT’s matter, but also the
matter of all people in Taiwan. Lo will travel all over Taiwan and rouse
Taiwan’s democracy by means of public speeches, taking part in informal
discussions, and cosigning, all beginning from the streets of Taiwan.
Negative Vote
Association Director-General Tien Shang Chang then stated that he is very happy
to see that the KMT is willing to take the lead in pushing for an amendment to the
referenda act. He also pointed out that referenda throughout the world are
overwhelmingly tied to general elections. For example, in an advanced democracy
like California, the law stipulates that referenda are tied to general
elections. In another advanced democracy, Switzerland, although referenda are
not tied to general elections, there is no lower threshold for approval votes.
These are both examples that Taiwan should learn from.
Huang Shih-Hsiu then took
his own signing of the passed “Referendum on the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant” as
an example. This referendum became legal precedent last year, but the
Legislative Yuan immediately amended the law to separate referenda from general
elections, causing the vote for the referendum to be postponed until 2021. At
present, the referenda act stipulates that the minimum threshold for approval votes
is five million ballots. However, in 2018, there was a “Sustainability via
Nuclear Power” referendum that obtained a 60% approval rate, and it obtained
only six million approval ballots while being tied to the nine-in-one local elections.
If it wasn’t tied to the general elections, would it still have passed? Huang dares
not be optimistic about this.
Confused, Huang
Shih-Hsiu asked, “Why is the DPP so afraid of the Referendum on the Fourth
Nuclear Power Plant?” He was also happy to see the KMT, for the sake of all
Taiwanese people, fight for the right to referenda, because this value of “Direct
Democracy” was pursued by the DPP for over thirty years, yet after they
obtained power they threw it away themselves, and it is the KMT who must now
pick it back up. Huang Shih-Hsiu also explained that he will join other civic
organizations and continue to push for amendments to the referenda act,
including absentee voting, electronic signing, and abolishment of the approval
vote minimum threshold, etc.
Alicia Wang stated, President
Tsai Ing-wen once said that the story of absolute power corrupting absolutely
would not take place, yet based on what we have seen of the DPP’s absolute
power in the Legislative Yuan, the results and costs have been repeated
incidents of corruption and abuse of authority. When did Taiwan turn into a
society that limits and reduces freedom of speech? When did Taiwan’s democracy
turn into the DPP president’s and premier’s final decision? Wang emphasized
that the DPP’s abuse of absolute power has reached a zenith, and now the
supervisory power of Taiwan’s checks and balances has been met with a grave
challenge. To confront the DPP’s massive dictatorial abuse of authority
requires even more strength from Taiwan’s democracy and people. For example, combining
referenda and general elections is even more so a practical, direct, and
important method for democratically returning power to the people.
Premier Su Tseng-chang
once said, “Tying referenda to general elections can cut down on expenditures
and can let public opinions be expressed directly.” Holding referenda on their
own requires about NTD$800 million in expenditures; conversely, tying them to
general elections can help the people save this sum of money. Alicia Wang
exclaimed, “What Su Tseng-chang said before is correct! Why is what he is doing
now wrong?”
In order to defend the
people’s right to referenda, the KMT will officially launch the “Give Back My
Referendum” campaign. With Chairman Johnny Chiang in the leading role and Lo
Chih-chiang as Chief Operating Officer, the KMT will start the “Reinstate the
Tying of Referenda to General Elections” signature drive. In the future, the
KMT will also join with every type of people’s livelihood, societal, and
environmental protection topics; join with the Legislative Yuan party caucus; and
join with the “Ye Tai” live broadcast, etc. In this way, this topic will spill
onto the streets, and democratic checks and balances will spill onto the
streets, building the KMT’s strength from the grassroots.
