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KMT LAWMAKERS OPPOSED TO SUPPLEMENTARY BUDGET FOR ARMS PROCUREMENT

ROC Central News Agency

2006-05-28 18:48:31

    Taipei, May 28 (CNA) Three lawmakers of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) expressed opposition Sunday to a supplementary budget plan for the planned procurement of a package of arms from the United States and for a plan to build a simple airport on an island in the South China Sea.

    Lin Yu-fang, Su Chi and Wu Cheng-tien, who are members of the Legislative Yuan's National Defense Committee, said they will not agree to review the supplementary budget of NT$6.2 billion (US$195 million) as it is wrong for the government to put forward such a budget.

    During a meeting held last Wednesday, the Executive Yuan approved the budget plan, under which NT$200 million would be used to evaluate the purchase of submarines from the United States, while the rest would be used to fund the upgrading of Patriot PAC-II anti-missile batteries and P-3C submarine-hunting aircraft and the construction of an airport on Taiping Island.

    All the relevant items listed by the Ministry of National Defense (MND) in its 2006 budget proposal to finance the procurement of P-3C aircraft, Patriot PAC-3 anti-missile batteries and diesel-electric submarines from the United States have been crossed out by the legislature, Lin said, adding that such a supplementary military procurement budget violates Article 79 of the Budget Law.

    Lin stressed that even though the Legislative Yuan agrees to screen the MND-proposed budget, the soon-to-be-concluded legislative session must be extended, while the budget proposal will be directly referred to a plenary meeting by skipping the National Defense Committee, which he said goes against set procedures.

    Wu said that a proposal on procuring Patriot PAC-3 anti-missile batteries was rejected in a national referendum held in tandem with the 2004 presidential election, adding that it is improper for the Cabinet to submit the supplementary budget for the upgrading of PAC-2 batteries, while Su said he has different views on the budget for building a simple airport on Taiping Island.

(By Luis Huang)

enditem/Li