Print

Mail

wiki links

Hau slams critics of gondola system

A person points to the crack between the No. 20 support tower of the Maokong Gondola system and its foundation on Wednesday. PHOTO: LIU HSIN-DE, TAIPEI TIMES

Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday dismissed a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilor’s warning about more damage to the pillars supporting the Maokong Gondola system and accused critics of planning the “political murder” of the system.

DPP Taipei City Councilor Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄) visited the gondola system yesterday and said in addition to the problematic Tower No. 16, whose stability was seriously damaged by mudslides in September, he had found a 20cm deep gap under Tower No. 20. He urged the city government to thoroughly examine the safety of the system.

Hau said the city government was conducting a comprehensive evaluation on all of the system’s 25 support pillars, while urging politicians to leave discussion of the system’s safety to experts.

“I think some people are planning a political murder of the Maokong Gondola, and even trying to blame it on President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九),” Hau said at the Taipei City Hall during a press conference..

Taipei City Secretariat Director Yang Hsi-an (楊錫安) said the city government did not have any knowledge of the gap under Tower No. 20, but the city government has been checking the status of all the pillars.

Hau said that the city government would respect the opinions of experts and make public safety its first priority.

“I know that some people want the gondola service to be suspended forever, but please give us the time and space to complete a comprehensive evaluation of the system,” he said.

Chuang lashed out at Hau and the city government for refusing to admit its mistakes. He said Tower No. 20 was built on unstable ground.
This story has been viewed 1012 times.