The Ministry of Economic Affairs yesterday gave a demerit to Edward Chen (陳貴明), chairman of the state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電), saying he had failed to do his best to carry out the ministry’s orders.
“The ministry decided to give Chen a demerit because he failed to clear the legal issue of the appointment [of a designated vice president] prior to the board meeting, which resulted in the firm’s board of directors not having the accurate information during its discussion,” Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Hsieh Fa-dah (謝發達), told reporters at a briefing yesterday.
APPOINTMENT REJECTED
The ministry’s punitive action came after Taipower’s board of directors rejected the appointment of Huang Fu-yuan (黃傅源) as vice president during their board meeting on March 28, even though the personnel arrangement — subject to the Executive Yuan’s approval — had been ratified by Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) on March 21.
“Chen should not have made any judgments based on his personal impression of Huang,” Hsieh said.
Local media have speculated that Chen purposely disobeyed the ministry order because of a personal dislike of Huang. As a result, reports said, the ministry was considering removing Chen from his position if it were determined that he purposely disobeyed the order.
“In our investigation of Chen’s attitude at the firm’s board meeting [on March 28], we did not find any evidence that Chen purposely steered the meeting in a direction that the ministry did not want to see,” Hsieh said.
BRIBERY
Concerning allegations that Huang had paid a bribe to secure the position, the ministry said it had requested that the Taipei District Court investigate and would postpone the Taipower appointment until any investigation results were released.
In response to the ministry’s decision, Chen said in a written statement that “he sincerely apologized for any trouble this personnel case may have caused the minister of Economic Affairs [Steve Chen (陳瑞隆)].”
Meanwhile, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Chen Chin-jun (陳景峻) yesterday denied that he had personally selected Huang for the Taipower position.
Chen Chin-jun made the remarks after Steve Chen told lawmakers during a question-and-answer session that the ministry had selected Huang based on Chen Chin-jun’s recommendation.
Huang allegedly paid a bribe of NT$20 million to get the promotion, a charge that he has rebutted, vowing to take legal action against his detractors.
Chen Chin-jun said in a press statement that he acted on the recommendation of others when he suggested that Steve Chen consider Huang, but he denied that he pressured the minister into endorsing Huang.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
AMENDMENT: Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of high-temperature days, affecting economic productivity and public health, experts said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is considering amending the Meteorological Act (氣象法) to classify “high temperatures” as “hazardous weather,” providing a legal basis for work or school closures due to extreme heat. CWA Administrator Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) yesterday said the agency plans to submit the proposed amendments to the Executive Yuan for review in the fourth quarter this year. The CWA has been monitoring high-temperature trends for an extended period, and the agency contributes scientific data to the recently established High Temperature Response Alliance led by the Ministry of Environment, Lu said. The data include temperature, humidity, radiation intensity and ambient wind,
SECOND SPEECH: All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist the CCP, despite their differences, the president said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday discussed how pro-Taiwan and pro-Republic of China (ROC) groups can agree to maintain solidarity on the issue of protecting Taiwan and resisting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The talk, delivered last night at Taoyuan’s Hakka Youth Association, was the second in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. Citing Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui’s (蔣渭水) slogan that solidarity brings strength, Lai said it was a call for political parties to find consensus amid disagreements on behalf of bettering the nation. All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist
RSS