The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) cannot investigate Vice Premier Chiou I-jen (邱義仁) over his role in the Papua New Guinea fund scandal now that he is no longer a party member, the director of the DPP’s Culture and Information Department, Yen Sheng-kuan (顏聖冠), said yesterday.
While the DPP on Sunday decided to launch a probe into the matter, Yen said Chiou’s decision to leave the party had negated the party’s decision.
Yen, however, pointed out that the party could still ask its Evaluation Committee to conduct a probe if necessary.
PHOTO: WANG MIN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
NO EVILDOERS
“We will not harbor any evildoers nor cover up their mistakes,” she said. “We will also cooperate fully with the judiciary.”
As a precedent, the DPP stripped party membership in 2005 from former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Chen Che-nan (陳哲男) after Chen had withdrawn from the party over a corruption scandal.
DPP chairman candidate Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏) yesterday said that Chiou should be held chiefly responsible for the scandal, but President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) must also shoulder part of the blame.
Koo said Chiou should be held mainly responsible if he wired the money based simply on his “trust” in the two intermediaries.
As for President Chen, Koo said the president held great trust in Chiou and although the president’s motive may have been sound, as the head of state, Chen was duty-bound to bear part of the responsibility.
Koo said the scandal had delivered yet another blow to the image of the country and party, but said if Taiwan were a normal country, this would not have happened.
SERIOUS MISTAKE
Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟), a close aide of DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), yesterday requested that President Chen withdraw from the party for making a serious mistake.
Describing the scandal as “far off the beam,” Chao said the president should be held responsible for letting the scandal happen and bypassing executive and legislative oversight.
The administration missed the critical period for recovering the money and capturing suspects, causing a dent in the image of the party and the country, he said.
Chao, however, emphasized that it was just his personal opinion and that he was not speaking for Hsieh.
Chiou yesterday said that it would be “unfair and unnecessary” for President Chen to withdraw from the party because although the president was aware of the matter, he did not give the order.
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