Engineers group defends Sanchung flooding report

In response to the Taipei City Govern-ment's accusation that the Taiwan Professional Civil Engineers Asso-ciation's investigation of flooding in Sanchung was unfair, the group's chairman James Yu (余烈) yesterday asked city officials to debate the results openly on a call-in show.

After the association traced the flooding during Typhoon Aere to negligence by the city's Department of Rapid Transit Systems and three MRT contractors, city officials repeatedly stated their disagreement with the report. The city's Law and Regulation Commission Director, Chen Ching-hsiu (陳清秀), yesterday held a news conference to say the association was not able to determine responsibility for the flooding since engineers are not legal experts.

"Even if the city government has to take part of the responsibility, it would be less than 50 percent," Chen said. "I think engineers might not be as proficient with legal issues as legal experts."

Yu reacted angrily to Chen's remarks, asking him or "any other city official" to debate the report's results on a call-in show. "I can't agree with the city government officials' attitudes rejecting the investigation result just because the result was unfavorable to them," Yu said in a news conference yesterday afternoon. "There is only one truth for the disaster, and I believe that the professionalism of my investigation team could resist the public's examination."

Yu said the association was selected by the city and county governments to investigate Sanchung's inundation, yet the city government overruled the investigation results, which puzzled and humiliated the engineers.

Still later yesterday, Chen rejected Yu's challenge and said a debate is not necessary.

Meanwhile, in response to charges that department director Chang Chi-teh (常岐德) did not accept proper punishment, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said that for Chang to be investigated by the Control Yuan "was more severe than dismissing him."

Taipei city council members from all parties were unhappy with Ma's handling of the disciplinary actions, asking Ma to make a special flood report on Sept. 14 at the fall's first city council session.

"Not only Chang should be investigated by the Control Yuan -- Ma himself also cannot escape from the inquiry for his omission as the top supervisor," Chou Po-ya (周柏雅), the council's Democratic Progressive Party caucus leader, said yesterday.