President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) is scheduled to respond to the opposition-initiated recall motion tonight, not as a rebuttal statement made directly to the legislature, but in a public address to the nation.
"The president has decided to deal with the matter in a responsible manner," said Presidential Office Secretary-General Mark Chen (陳唐山). "He will report directly to the people at 8pm at the auditorium of the Presidential Office and the event will be broadcast live on TV."
Mark Chen made the remark yesterday afternoon while attending an event held by the Presidential Office press corps.
The legislature is scheduled to kick off its four-day review of the recall proposal tomorrow and vote on it next Tuesday.
The motion is considered unlikely to pass given the high threshold required -- two-thirds support in the legislature and a majority of eligible voters in a nationwide referendum -- but the pan-blue camp has said it hopes to pressure the president into resigning.
Mark Chen said the president would respond point by point to the "10 crimes" listed by the opposition as a justification for their recall motion.
The accusations include corruption, abuse of power, instigation of political confrontation, obstruction of justice, suppression of the media and incompetent governance of the country.
Describing the 10 justifications as "irrational," Mark Chen said that the pan-blue alliance had used them to first deceive themselves and then try to convince the public that they were legitimate.
As no evidence has proven that the first family are guilty of any corruption, Mark Chen said the pan-blue camp had to come up with flimsy rationales such as "incompetence" for the recall.
"Recalling the president is a serious matter, but the pan-blue camp is using the recall bid to pursue their political agenda at the expense of national stability and people's livelihood," he said.
Mark Chen also criticized Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
"It not only reveals his political ambitions, but also threatens prosecutors and investigators to toe the line of the pan-blue camp or face retaliation if they come to power in 2008," he said.
Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Cho Jung-tai (
"I believe that the president will make his stance so clearly known that the media will not have any questions for him afterwards," he said, responding to media inquiry about whether there would be a question-and-answer session after the president's address.
While some of the corruption scandals implicating the first family and Chen's in-laws are still the subject of judicial processes, Cho said the president would not offer any details or analysis of those cases but would instead make known his own position and attitude.
"The corruption allegations will be a focal point of his public address, but not the only focus," Cho said.
He added he hoped the president's public address would help usher in a more harmonious atmosphere to the political arena.
"We hope the opposition parties will be more cooperative after listening to the president's explanation," Cho said. "We'd like to see them focus their attention on passing bills concerning people's livelihood and hopefully, cancel the scheduled review sessions and votes."
Hong Kong singer Eason Chan’s (陳奕迅) concerts in Kaohsiung this weekend have been postponed after he was diagnosed with Covid-19 this morning, the organizer said today. Chan’s “FEAR and DREAMS” concert which was scheduled to be held in the coming three days at the Kaohsiung Arena would be rescheduled to May 29, 30 and 31, while the three shows scheduled over the next weekend, from May 23 to 25, would be held as usual, Universal Music said in a statement. Ticket holders can apply for a full refund or attend the postponed concerts with the same seating, the organizer said. Refund arrangements would
Taiwanese indie band Sunset Rollercoaster and South Korean outfit Hyukoh collectively received the most nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards, earning a total of seven nods from the jury on Wednesday. The bands collaborated on their 2024 album AAA, which received nominations for best band, best album producer, best album design and best vocal album recording. “Young Man,” a single from the album, earned nominations for song of the year and best music video, while another track, “Antenna,” also received a best music video nomination. Late Hong Kong-American singer Khalil Fong (方大同) was named the jury award winner for his 2024 album
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Friday laid out the Cabinet’s updated policy agenda and recapped the government’s achievements ahead of the one-year anniversary of President William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration. Cho said the government had made progress across a range of areas, including rebuilding Hualien, cracking down on fraud, improving pedestrian safety and promoting economic growth. “I hope the public will not have the impression that the Cabinet only asked the legislature to reconsider a bunch of legal amendments,” Cho said, calling the moves “necessary” to protect constitutional governance and the public’s interest. The Cabinet would work toward achieving its “1+7” plan, he said. The
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
RSS