WATCH | Taiwan parliament member runs away with bill to prevent passing; netizens say, ‘Is there a bill about stealing…’

Taiwanese lawmakers encountered a strange incident on Friday, May 17, when a member of Taiwan's parliament demonstrated discontent by simply picking up a bill and running off with it to prevent it from being passed.

On the fateful day, a bitter dispute unfolded over reforms to the chamber as Taiwanese lawmakers shoved, tackled and hit each other in parliament, reported Reuters

This development occurred just days before President-elect Lai Ching-te is set to take office on Monday. He won January's election without his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) attaining a legislative majority.

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Some lawmakers screamed and shoved at each other outside the legislative chamber even before the votes were cast. Later, the parliament floor witnessed chaotic scenes as lawmakers turned to the speaker's seat, leapt onto tables and pinned down colleagues to the floor. Meanwhile, more scuffles followed in the afternoon.

This brawl widely circulated on social media and has drawn satirical reactions from netizens. Social media users responded with memes, jokes and satires. One user stated, “Hey, Phil, can you just email it to all of us? Fucking Harold just ran off with the hard copy again.” Another user commented, “Is there a bill about stealing bills?”

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A third user remarked," Football player has so much advantage in parliament i guess." A fourth user said, “Imagine the surprise when they just printed out another copy.” A fifth user commented, “Taiwan’s parliament is always wild.” Another user satirically noted, “Parliament: Hit re-print.”

The Kuomintang (KMT), which is the main opposition party, procured more seats than the DPP but not enough to form a majority on its own. Consequently, the KMT has been collaborating with the smaller Taiwan People's Party (TPP) to to put forth their shared agendas.

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The opposition is advocating for greater scrutiny powers for the parliament over the government. This includes a contentious proposal that seeks to criminalise the act of officials making false statements in parliament.