Suspended Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) Chairman Kong Jaw-sheng (
"I have been suspended and I will leave ... it is impossible for me to return to the post," Kong told reporters yesterday.
"I respect the Cabinet's decision. But I came in [to the position of FSC chairman] with a clean reputation and I hope to leave with one," Kong said.
PHOTO: AP
He repeated these sentiments several times during the press conference, but shied away from giving a date for his resignation.
Stressing that he held himself to high moral standards and had a clear conscience, Kong said: "I am in this situation today because I got in the way of certain interest groups as the head of an independent financial supervisor, whose duties always involve interests worth tens of billions of dollars."
The official, who said he was politically naive, declined to identify the "interest groups" to which he referred.
Looking solemn but tired, Kong made the remarks at a media briefing yesterday after three days of silence following the Cabinet's unexpected decision to suspend him late last Friday.
Kong was questioned for about 13 hours and released on bail of NT$500,000 (US$15,800) last Thursday by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office, which is investigating claims he conducted public business for private gain during his chairmanship at the state-run Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar,
He was accused of awarding Taisugar's upscale cosmetics franchise to a certain company without going through the regulatory procurement process as well as bypassing government procurement requirements and hiring his sister-in-law as a paid consultant to the company's coffee shop business.
Kong was nominated to chair the FSC by the premier at the time, Yu Shyi-kun, and approved by President Chen Shui-bian (
As the position of FSC chairman has a four-year tenure, and the nation's highest financial regulator is supposed to be immune to political influence in order to safeguard the independent status of financial policy-making, some have questioned whether it is possible for Kong to be forcibly removed.
The confrontation between Kong and the Cabinet appeared to escalate yesterday as the government said it stood by its decision on Kong's suspension.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (
The ruling was made with prudence and legitimacy, and would not be changed, Cheng said, adding that the Cabinet expected Kong to make a "wise decision" as soon as possible.
Denying the allegations against him, Kong said it did not make sense that he would give up a well-paid job at an international investment banking business to make relatively small profits through corruption as a public servant on a much smaller salary.
Kong spent 20 years in the financial industry before entering the public sector, serving as a national manager for Credit Suisse First Boston and president of Lehman Brothers Holding Inc's Taiwan unit.
In light of recent developments, legislators are planning to amend regulations and set up a mechanism to dismiss corrupt officials who are in positions that enjoy political immunity.
Another such position of safety is that of governor of the central bank.
UNPRECEDENTED PACE: Micron Technology has announced plans to expand manufacturing capabilities with the acquisition of a new chip plant in Miaoli Micron Technology Inc unveiled a newly acquired chip plant in Miaoli County yesterday, as the company expands capacity to meet growing demand for advanced DRAM chips, including high-bandwidth memory chips amid the artificial intelligence boom. The plant in Miaoli County’s Tongluo Township (銅鑼), which Micron acquired from Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) for US$1.8 billion, is expected to make a sizeable capacity contribution to the company from fiscal 2028, the company said in a statement. It would be an extended production site of Micron’s large-scale manufacturing hub in Taichung, the company said. As the global semiconductor industry is racing to reach US$1 trillion
ABOVE LEGAL REQUIREMENT: The Ministry of Economic Affairs is prepared if LNG supply is disrupted, with more than the legal requirement of 11 days of inventory Taiwan has largely secured liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies through May and arranged about half of June’s supply, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday. Since the Middle East conflict began on Feb. 28, Taiwan’s LNG inventories have remained more than 12 days, exceeding the legal requirement of 11 days, indicating no major supply concerns for domestic gas and electricity, Kung said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. The ministry aims to increase the figure to 14 days by the end of next year, he said. While one or two LNG or crude oil shipments for May
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
RSS