Taipei: Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang affirmed Tuesday that the law leaves "no room for interpretation" regarding the dismissal of a village chief in Hualien County for holding People's Republic of China (PRC) nationality. Teng Wan-hua was elected as the chief of Xuetian Village in Fuli Township in 2022 but was removed from her position on August 1.
According to Focus Taiwan, Teng appealed the decision, and on October 29, the Hualien County government's Appeals Committee overturned her dismissal. Minister Liu addressed the media, noting that Article 20 of the Nationality Act mandates all elected public officials to renounce any non-Republic of China (ROC) nationality within one year of assuming office. The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) uses this legal framework to guide local governments on handling removals from office.
Liu further explained that Taiwan's constitution imposes the same restriction on all elected officials. She mentioned that the MOI has yet to receive the official appeal decision from either the Hualien County government or the Fuli Township Office.
Teng, approximately 50 years old, was born in Sichuan Province, China. She moved to Taiwan 28 years ago after marrying a Taiwanese national and obtained a Taiwanese national identification card 17 years prior. Earlier this year, the MOI identified five serving village chiefs nationwide with PRC citizenship and directed township and city offices to address the issue as per the Nationality Act.
Teng's removal by the Fuli Township Office in August marked her as the first village chief in Taiwan to be dismissed for not renouncing her Chinese citizenship.