Taipei prosecutors said yesterday they are investigating a scandal involving financially strapped Far Eastern Air Transport (FAT, 遠東航空) officials who were suspected of bribing Chinese officials to win route rights in China.
Prosecutors said yesterday that Lou Wen-hao (樓文豪), an official of the Taiwan branch of Cambodia’s Angkor Airways Corp, told prosecutors that he had represented FAT officials in wiring around NT$175 million (US$5.7 million) to Chinese aviation authority officials, hoping they could help FAT to win rights at an airport in Wuxi in Jiangsu Province, and an airport in Tsingtao in Shandong Province.
Prosecutors said they are looking for a man suspected of contacting Chinese officials to facilitate the matter, adding that the case is tough because they are unlikely to interview any Chinese officials who checked their accounts.
Prosecutors discovered the scandal as they probed FAT officials over their alleged involvement in an embezzlement scandal.
Lou, former FAT chairman Stephen Tsui (崔湧) and former FAT president Philip Chen (陳尚群) have been detained since late April on suspicion of embezzling NT$2 billion from the airline, throwing the company into a financial crisis.
Prosecutors said they were probing the whereabouts of the missing funds when Lou told them that part of the money might have been used to bribe Chinese officials.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
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