EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) chairman Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) was removed from his post yesterday, in the latest fallout from an escalating struggle between heirs to Evergreen Group (長榮集團) founder Chang Yung-fa (張榮發) as they vie to control the NT$400 billion (US$12.14 billion) shipping and transportation conglomerate.
Former Evergreen Steel Corp (長榮鋼鐵) chairman Steve Lin (林寶水) has been tapped to take the helm at EVA Airways following an extraordinary board meeting, the nation’s second-largest airline said in a regulatory filing.
Lin, a 40-year veteran at Evergreen Group, had served as chairman of EVA Airways between 2005 and 2011.
Photo: Wang Yi-hung, Taipei Times
During Lin’s chairmanship, the airline weathered the global financial crisis and then-surging oil prices, recording earnings per share of NT$3.69 for 2010.
“In light of ongoing disputes, the board has decided to return management control of EVA Air to an industry expert,” Lin said at a news conference at the Taiwan Stock Exchange Corp.
In a statement issued through his lawyer, Chang Kuo-wei raised concerns about possible disruption to the airline’s operation following a sudden change in leadership.
He also questioned whether the process conforms to procedural compliance, according to the statement.
Chang said in the statement he regretted that the executors of his father’s will and other heirs had gone against the wishes of the late Chang Yung-fa, who passed away on Jan. 20.
The succession battle between heirs to the conglomerate began when Chang Kuo-wei last month revealed a will left by his father, before the family agreed on the succession issue.
Chang Kuo-wei said that his father’s will had named him as successor to the Evergreen Group chairmanship and sole inheritor of Chang Yung-fa’s estate, worth billions of New Taiwan dollars.
Subsequently, Chang Yung-fa’s eldest son, Chang Kuo-hua (張國華), led his two brothers by his father’s first wife in leveraging their 16.31 percent combined stake in EVA Airways to challenge Chang Kuo-wei’s claim, backed by a smaller 14.37 percent stake.
Using their superior controlling stake, an extraordinary board meeting late last month was called to dissolve the group’s top management team, effectively ending Chang Kuo-wei’s one-day reign as Evergreen Group chairman.
The family feud continued, with the elder Chang brothers holding yet another extraordinary board meeting to remove Chang Kuo-wei’s chairmanship at EVA Airways.
In an interview with the Chinese-language Apple Daily, Chang Kuo-wei said that he did his best to carry out his father’s will, and that he will let others assess his track record at EVA Airways.
Looking ahead, Chang said that he has no regrets, and plans to take a break from the aviation industry, the newspaper quoted him as saying.
PROTECTION: The New Taipei City mayor said a pass could cover stores, but not eateries, while Ko Wen-je said vaccinated people could be exempted from some rules Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) on Saturday proposed implementing a “COVID-19 pass” regulation that would allow only vaccinated people into certain areas. New Taipei City is planning to require a “COVID-19 pass” for entry to “vulnerable spaces” to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Hou said. Non-students entering elementary schools in New Taipei City are required to show their COVID-19 vaccination cards or proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test. This is for the protection of students under the age of 12, who are not eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, city officials have said. The
‘GOOD FRIEND’: The Slovenian prime minister said he had visited Taiwan four or five times, and that Taiwanese should have the right to determine their future The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed Slovenia’s plan to establish a representative office in Taiwan, after Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa revealed the plan in an interview with Indian TV station Doordarshan on Monday. Taiwan is a democratic country that respects international democratic standards and international laws, the Slovenian prime minister said in the interview. Slovenia and Taiwan are working on “exchanging representatives,” he said. “Of course, this will not be on the level of embassies. It will be on the same level as many of the EU member countries.” “When I spoke with our businessmen who are trading with Taiwan, they
BRIBES FOR VOTES: A probe found that funding for the scheme came from Huang Daonian, director of the Economic Bureau at Changsha City’s Taiwan Affairs Office Five Taiwanese businesspeople working in China were yesterday found guilty of taking money from Chinese authorities to buy votes for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) in the 2020 presidential election. The Taipei District Court sentenced Association of Taiwan Investment Enterprises (台灣同胞投資企業協會) Changsha City Branch chairman Lin Huai (林懷) to three years and 10 months in jail, with deprivation of his civil rights for four years. The other four convicted in the case, who all received 20-month prison terms, were China New Family Association (中華兩岸新家庭協會) chairwoman Chiang Ming-sia (蔣明霞), Hunan Shaoyang City Association in Taiwan (湖南邵陽旅台同鄉會) director Chang Kuo-chun (張國君),
LUNAR NEW YEAR: The nation is expecting 4,200 international travelers to arrive today and 3,900 tomorrow, as people return home for the holidays, the CECC said The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday said it expects imported cases of COVID-19 to further increase today and tomorrow — the peak period for international arrivals before the Lunar New Year holiday. The nation has seen more imported cases of COVID-19 since it implemented a new policy on Tuesday requiring travelers on long-haul flights to undergo a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test upon arrival. Those who test positive are taken directly to hospitals from airports. Most of the recent confirmed cases of COVID-19 were travelers arriving from the US, CECC data showed. On Tuesday, 58 of the 625 travelers arriving at Taiwan
RSS