The Cabinet yesterday launched a referendum review committee, taking a step toward President Chen Shui-bian's (
Cabinet Secretary-General Liu Shih-fang (
"Technically, we don't have any problem with holding a referendum. However, the timing and the impact it will have is what concerns us," she said, adding that the Cabinet will use its second emergency fund to cover the cost of the first referendum.
In addition to calling on the Legislative Yuan to pass the referendum bill during the next legislative session, Liu reiterated that the Cabinet's first priority is to push for the speedy passage of the bill so that it has sufficient time to prepare for the first referendum.
According to the Central Election Commission, the agency assigned by the Cabinet to conduct the referendum, it has to decide what issues it will put before the citizenry before November if the referendum is to coincide with the presidential election.
Minister without Portfolio Hsu Chih-hsiung (
"In addition to such talked-about issues as the nation's entry into the World Health Organization, the fate of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant and legislative reform, we welcome any other topics on public policies," Hsu said.
Although committee members do not include nuclear or medical experts, Hsu said the committee can invite such professionals to offer their opinions if necessary.
The committee members include six officials and eight academics or other experts, including Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (
The committee will scrutinize the issues for referendums and implementation plans put forth by the authorities.
The Cabinet has to promulgate a referendum issue within 10 days of deciding that a referendum will be held. The referendum date must be arranged within two months from the day the issues are made public.
The Taipei Department of Health yesterday said it has launched a probe into a restaurant at Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store after a customer died of suspected food poisoning. A preliminary investigation on Sunday found missing employee health status reports and unsanitary kitchen utensils at Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in the department store’s basement food court, the department said. No direct relationship between the food poisoning death and the restaurant was established, as no food from the day of the incident was available for testing and no other customers had reported health complaints, it said, adding that the investigation is ongoing. Later
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