The Examination Yuan's reform proposal on civil servants' evaluation has not only drawn backlash from public functionaries but also stirred a heated debate at a weekly Cabinet meeting Thursday. At issue were proposals that at least 3 percent of the staff at government agencies be given grade-C on their performance and that if an employee receives three Cs in a row, he or she should be fired or forced into early retirement. The following are excerpts from local media coverage of the issue: United Daily News: Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Yong-ping spoke twice at Thursday's weekly Cabinet meeting, asking Premier Wu Den-yi to explicitly oppose the Examination Yuan's proposed amendments to the Civil Servants Evaluation Act. Stressing that the 3 percent grade-C quota system is unfair to government agencies that have outstanding administrative records, Lee said the central government should formulate clearer and more detailed assessment criteria to ensure fair treatment of all public functionaries. Both Education Minister Wu Ching-chi and Finance Minister Lee Sush-der echoed Lee Yong-ping's opinions, urging Wu to take a stance against the initiative because, if adopted, it could undermine civil servants' morale. Wu Tai-cheng, minister of the Central Personnel Administration under the Executive Yuan, suggested that the grade-C rating should not be rigidly implemented and that the quota ratio should be more lenient. According to Wu Tai-cheng, eight administrative agencies experimented with the regulation in the past, but most of their chiefs failed to uphold it. Premier Wu did not respond directly to the officials' suggestions, but instead said the call for reform should not be opposed. 'We should not stand in the way of reform, ' he said. Although opinions on specific reform measures may be divided, the direction of the Examination Yuan's proposed reform is correct, he added. (March 19, 2010). China Times: President Ma Ying-jeou invited heads of the Executive Yuan, Legislative Yuan and Examination Yuan to a meeting Thursday on the Examination Yuan's draft proposals for weeding out low-performing civil servants. During the meeting, Examination Yuan President John Kuan said the current system of evaluating civil servants performance has become obsolete and ineffective. Kuan complained that the proposed 3 percent grade-C quota system had encountered strong opposition even before it was formally unveiled. Premier Wu reportedly voiced reservations at the meeting over the proposals, saying that reform should not compromise internal stability. Wu further said the present evaluation system can be effective once the heads of government agencies faithfully and fairly abide by the assessment regulations. (March 19, 2010). Liberty Times: A day after vowing to uphold health insurance reform even it leads to a loss of voter support, President Ma failed to throw equally heavy weight behind an Examination Yuan initiative to introduce a stringent quota system to weed out poorly performing civil servants. After listening to a briefing by Examination Yuan President Kuan Thursday on the proposed 3 percent grade-C quota system, Ma responded that further studies would be needed to determine whether the proposed system would be in line with the existing law, the spirit of the Constitution and its provisions. Ma also asked that the relevant government agencies present feasible proposals to offset the possible 'side effects' of the new quota system. His 'side effects' comment referred to possible backlash from civil servants who are traditionally core supporters of the ruling Kuomintang of which Ma concurrently services as chairman. (March 19, 2010). 