Amid vociferous protests and shoving matches, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Promising not to boycott Ma in the same fashion that pan-blue lawmakers have used in the legislature, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) councilors used long speeches and protests to criticize Ma for providing an "unprofessional and incomplete municipal report" and for ignoring his responsibilities as mayor since being elected Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman.
"The municipal report only gave good news and failed to include problematic issues such as the lawsuit Taipei MRT lost to Matra, and delays to many construction projects," the DPP's caucus leader Councilor Chen Cheng-teh (
PHOTO: CHANG CHIA-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
Upset by the pan-green camp's obstructions, KMT Councilor Yang Shih-chiu (
Council Speaker Wu Bi-chu (
Prior to reporting on "how to build Taipei into a healthy city," Ma responded to councilors' questions, in which DPP and KMT councilors were split on whether the issue of Feitsui Reservoir (翡翠水庫) should be of concern to the city government.
"Opening up access to the section between Pinglin (坪林) and Shiding (石碇) on the Taipei-Ilan highway will influence the water quality of Feitsui Reservoir," Ma said. "This concerns the rights and interests of the 8 million people in Taipei city and county. Of course it is the responsibility of the city government. I don't agree that it is only an issue for the Legislative Yuan."
During the question-and-answer session, an allegation that Bureau of Civil Affairs Ho Hung-jung's (
According to reports in the Chinese-language media, Ho was absent from work early this month when Typhoon Khanun hit the island as he was on vacation with his secretary in Bali.
Ma defended Ho yesterday, saying that Ho had asked for leave. But he promised to continue an investigation into whether Ho needs to take any responsibility regarding the matter.
Ho yesterday denied the accusation and said that he did ask for leave by having his staff apply for him. He also denied having an affair with his secretary.
After the discussions ended, the council agreed that Ma and his team should prepare special reports on four issues between now and next month, including the donation of part of the Institute on Policy Research and Development's land to Yong-jian Elementary School, the reform of the city hospital system and delays in construction projects.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS