Broadcasting Corporation of China (BCC) chairman Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康) said yesterday he would terminate his contract with Hua Hsia Investment Holding Co (華夏投資公司) over the purchase of BCC, over what he called "relentless persecution" from the government.
"I just want to run a media business, that's all. But apparently I can't beat politics," he said. "Given this, there is no need to remain entangled in this matter anymore."
Jaw said his resignation as BCC chairman and president was effective immediately. Starting tomorrow, he said he would no longer host BCC's morning show Time with Jaw Shaw-Kong.
Jaw said he had appointed a senior financial officer at BCC to temporarily take over the company's operations.
Meanwhile, his lawyer will meet Hua Hsia representatives to settle disputes resulting from the termination of his contract.
If the disputes cannot be resolved within two weeks, Jaw said he would request that a court appoint a temporary manager.
The announcement came after the National Communication Commission (NCC) in June approved the sale of BCC to four subsidiaries believed to be affiliated with Jaw. In July, however, the Executive Yuan suspended the NCC ruling.
During this time, Jaw laid off approximately 200 BCC employees and assigned some of these positions to staff he brought from former company UFO Radio.
Jaw said the Cabinet had launched a "comprehensive" investigation into the deal after suspending the NCC ruling. He said officials from the Investigation Bureau, the Financial Supervisory Committee and the National Security Bureau had looked into various accounts he and his colleagues held and used for unlawful transactions.
At the order of the Cabinet, the Ministry of Economic Affairs refused to allow BCC to change its ownership registration. The Fair Trade Commission claims that BCC holds a monopoly in the national radio industry.
Jaw said the NCC had issued official notices to these organizations while the case was being reviewed. None of these organizations had expressed doubts or objections over the legality of the deal, he said.
Jaw said the NCC had set really "stringent" conditions when it approved the sale, which he reluctantly accepted.
"Little did we know our troubles were just beginning," he said.
The NCC ruling said BCC shares had to be publicly traded.
Jaw's wife, Liang Lei (梁蕾), was also required to reduce her shareholding to less than 10 percent.
The NCC also asked BCC to give back two radio frequencies used to broadcast anti-communist propaganda.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) sold BCC to China Times Group (
China Television Co (
The transaction was facilitated by Hua Hsia, an investment firm owned by the KMT. The deal, however, was cancelled because the China Times Group was unable to pay the sum in full.
Last year, Hua Hsia decided to sell BCC to Jaw.
Jaw, however, never said how much he paid for the company.
In response, the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Commercial Department said that it could not approve the deal because BCC failed to provide the documents needed to register board member changes.
Meanwhile, the KMT-owned Central Investment Co (
"We sympathize with Jaw, but we had nothing to do with the matter. BCC will not be returned to us because that would be illegal," company chairman Steve Wong (
Wong insisted that all the deals had been legal and that it was now down to Hua Hsia and Jungli to decide how to deal with the matter.
Additional reporting by Mo Yan-chih
Rainfall is expected to become more widespread and persistent across central and southern Taiwan over the next few days, with the effects of the weather patterns becoming most prominent between last night and tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said that based on the latest forecast models of the combination of a low-pressure system and southwesterly winds, rainfall and flooding are expected to continue in central and southern Taiwan from today to Sunday. The CWA also warned of flash floods, thunder and lightning, and strong gusts in these areas, as well as landslides and fallen
WAITING GAME: The US has so far only offered a ‘best rate tariff,’ which officials assume is about 15 percent, the same as Japan, a person familiar with the matter said Taiwan and the US have completed “technical consultations” regarding tariffs and a finalized rate is expected to be released soon, Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) told a news conference yesterday, as a 90-day pause on US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs is set to expire today. The two countries have reached a “certain degree of consensus” on issues such as tariffs, nontariff trade barriers, trade facilitation, supply chain resilience and economic security, Lee said. They also discussed opportunities for cooperation, investment and procurement, she said. A joint statement is still being negotiated and would be released once the US government has made
MASSIVE LOSS: If the next recall votes also fail, it would signal that the administration of President William Lai would continue to face strong resistance within the legislature The results of recall votes yesterday dealt a blow to the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) efforts to overturn the opposition-controlled legislature, as all 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers survived the recall bids. Backed by President William Lai’s (賴清德) DPP, civic groups led the recall drive, seeking to remove 31 out of 39 KMT lawmakers from the 113-seat legislature, in which the KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) together hold a majority with 62 seats, while the DPP holds 51 seats. The scale of the recall elections was unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23. For a
SOUTH CHINA SEA? The Philippine president spoke of adding more classrooms and power plants, while skipping tensions with China over disputed areas Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr yesterday blasted “useless and crumbling” flood control projects in a state of the nation address that focused on domestic issues after a months-long feud with his vice president. Addressing a joint session of congress after days of rain that left at least 31 dead, Marcos repeated his recent warning that the nation faced a climate change-driven “new normal,” while pledging to investigate publicly funded projects that had failed. “Let’s not pretend, the people know that these projects can breed corruption. Kickbacks ... for the boys,” he said, citing houses that were “swept away” by the floods. “Someone has
RSS