Control Yuan President Wang Chien-shien kept a low profile yesterday on whether former National Security Council secretary-general Chiou I-jen (邱義仁) and former minister of foreign affairs James Huang (黃志芳) would be impeached over the Papua New Guinea diplomatic funds scandal.
When approached for comment, Wang said the Control Yuan had completed its probe into Chiou and Huang and the final report would be released in two weeks.
Wang declined to discuss the probe results, saying only that “those who did something wrong are supposed to be impeached.”
The Chinese-language China Times reported yesterday that Wang and Control Yuan member Tu Shan-liang (杜善良) would file a joint proposal to impeach Chiou, Huang and Huang’s aid Chang Chiang-sheng (張強生).
The scandal came to light in May last year when the Central News Agency reported that two brokers hired by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had absconded with NT$1 billion (US$30 million) that was to be given to the Pacific island country if it cut diplomatic ties with China in favor of Taipei.
Huang has denied any direct involvement in the disappearance of the funds and said the ministry had been the victim of a con.
Huang and Chiou, who have admitted introducing one of the brokers to Huang, were forced to resign over the mishap.
One of the alleged con men is in custody, while the other is at large, reportedly in the US.
Wang has vowed to prioritize the probe into the scandal.
When asked whether it was appropriate for him to propose impeaching the former officials, Wang said: “Of course. The Control Yuan president is also a member of the Control Yuan.”
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
RSS