President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen asked that Su "take good care" of the problem and mete out punishment if necessary.
He also asked Yu to discuss the possibility of revamping exiting laws within the DPP caucus to make it mandatory to publish information on financial institutions with extravagant bad loans.
"I am totally baffled by the regulation. Why cannot the identity of the individuals who maliciously pilage financial institutions be made public? Why must it be the government and the public who are left to deal with the problems, while those who are responsible get away with it?" he asked.
Chen made the remarks during a press conference held in Managua, Nicaragua. He was visiting the nation's ally in Central America to attend the inauguration of Nicaraguan president-elect Daniel Ortega yesterday.
Yu is part of Chen's delegation in Nicaragua.
Two subsidiaries of the Rebar Asia Pacific Group (
The bank was taken over by the government through the Central Deposit Insurance Corp last Friday, causing a public uproar over alleged misuse of taxpayer's money.
Rebar Group chairman Wang You-theng (
Chen then commented on the fairness and utility of using taxpayer money to deal with the situation.
"The government must listen to the grievances of the people and bow humbly before them," he said.
On a separate issue, replying to a question about the constitutionality of prosecutors questioning the president, Chen said that it was open for debate and that the problem lies with the system rather than the person.
Chen caused a stir by relinquishing his presidential prerogative and accepting to be questioned by prosecutors investigating the alleged misuse of his "state affairs fund."
The DPP caucus has requested that the Council of Grand Justices determine whether prosecutors violated Article 52 of the Constitution, which grants immunity to the president except in case of sedition or treason.
While the Taipei District Court again requested that the Presidential Office present by today documents relating to the fund -- part of which Chen claims to have used for matters of secret diplomacy -- Chen said he would let the Presidential Office deal with the matter.
The office has refused to comply with the court's first request last month.
The military has spotted two Chinese warships operating in waters near Penghu County in the Taiwan Strait and sent its own naval and air forces to monitor the vessels, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said. Beijing sends warships and warplanes into the waters and skies around Taiwan on an almost daily basis, drawing condemnation from Taipei. While the ministry offers daily updates on the locations of Chinese military aircraft, it only rarely gives details of where Chinese warships are operating, generally only when it detects aircraft carriers, as happened last week. A Chinese destroyer and a frigate entered waters to the southwest
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comment last year on Tokyo’s potential reaction to a Taiwan-China conflict has forced Beijing to rewrite its invasion plans, a retired Japanese general said. Takaichi told the Diet on Nov. 7 last year that a Chinese naval blockade or military attack on Taiwan could constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan, potentially allowing Tokyo to exercise its right to collective self-defense. Former Japan Ground Self-Defense Force general Kiyofumi Ogawa said in a recent speech that the remark has been interpreted as meaning Japan could intervene in the early stages of a Taiwan Strait conflict, undermining China’s previous assumptions
Taiwan Railways Corp (TRC) today announced that Shin Kong Mitsukoshi has been selected as the preferred bidder to operate the Taipei Railway Station shopping mall, replacing the current operator, Breeze Development Co Ltd. Among eight qualified firms that delivered presentations and were evaluated by a review committee, Shin Kong Mitsukoshi was ranked first, while Breeze was named the runner-up, the rail company said in a statement. Contract negotiations are to proceed in accordance with regulations, it said, adding that if negotiations with the top bidder fail, it could invite the second-ranked applicant to enter talks. Breeze in a statement today expressed doubts over
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