The DPP government plans to strengthen its efforts to carry President Chen Shui-bian's
During last week's policy making meeting for the president's nine-member task force, an agreement was made to draw on more of the government's resources to crack down on crime at the grassroots level.
"People have a deep-seated hatred, not only of gangsters who are involved in politics, who were members of crime organizations and then become congressmen, but also from their personal encounters with theft and robbery," said DPP legislative caucus leader Perng Shaw-jiin (
Perng said that the government should place more importance on what the general public feels than worry about what politicians are saying.
Hsu Tain-tsair (許添財), the head of the DPP's legislative caucus, agreed.
"Residents can't stand it when crime seems to surround them," Hsu said.
During the meeting the president asked members to evaluate the recent move by opposition members to push for his recall.
In their comments, task force members focused on the importance of some independent lawmakers halting their support of the KMT's push to oust Chen. In order to pass a recall vote in the Legislative Yuan, some 147 votes are needed.
Of those votes, a crucial number, seven, need to come from independent lawmakers.
One source in the meeting said that legal cases have pressured some lawmakers, such as Tsai Hao (蔡豪), Luo Fu-chu (羅福助) and Wu Tse-yuan (伍澤元) into taking a neutral stance, helping stave off the push for a recall of the president.
"Tsai is scared because of an scandal that he is suspected of involvement in and Wu faces similar problems," the source said. "For now they should keep a low profile and not support the opposition party alliance."
Tsai is suspected of involvement in a land scandal and Wu was sentenced to 15 years last week, after being found guilty of accepting bribes in the handling of a flood prevention project between 1988 and 1992. A medical parole has allowed Wu to stay out of jail and continue to serve in the legislature.
Perng also suggested that the government be as even-handed as possible in its crack down on black gold since the DPP had to use its achievements to help boost its campaign in next year's legislative elections.
Perng said that the approach could also be used to counter opposition parties' possible attack of the government's economic policies.
The nine-member task force includes the president, Vice President Annette Lu
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer began talks with high-ranking Chinese officials in Switzerland yesterday aiming to de-escalate a dispute that threatens to cut off trade between the world’s two biggest economies and damage the global economy. The US delegation has begun meetings in Geneva with a Chinese delegation led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), Xinhua News Agency said. Diplomats from both sides also confirmed that the talks have begun, but spoke anonymously and the exact location of the talks was not made public. Prospects for a major breakthrough appear dim, but there is
The number of births in Taiwan fell to an all-time monthly low last month, while the population declined for the 16th consecutive month, Ministry of the Interior data released on Friday showed. The number of newborns totaled 8,684, which is 704 births fewer than in March and the lowest monthly figure on record, the ministry said. That is equivalent to roughly one baby born every five minutes and an annual crude birthrate of 4.52 per 1,000 people, the ministry added. Meanwhile, 17,205 deaths were recorded, resulting in a natural population decrease of 8,521, the data showed. More people are also leaving Taiwan, with net
RSS