On the first anniversary of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) inauguration, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilors yesterday held him responsible for the inactive Maokong Gondola system, and accused his former Taipei City administration of engaging in corrupt practices.
The Maokong Gondola system, which has been suspended from service since Oct. 1 last year after mudslides eroded the ground beneath a support pillar, was one of Ma’s major projects when he was mayor of Taipei.
In January, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) announced that the problematic support pillar, also known as Tower No.16, would be relocated. He also reported 11 city government officials and two contracting companies to the Control Yuan and the Taipei Prosecutors’ Office for investigation into possible dereliction of duty.
DPP Taipei City councilors Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) and Chou Wei-you (周威佑) yesterday accused Ma and his municipal team of colluding with contractors to change the route of the gondola line, and fabricate geological reports on all 25 towers to speed up the construction so the project could be completed and become a municipal achievement for Ma.
“The whole structure of the gondola system is problematic. All of the 25 towers were built on shaky ground, but the former Ma administration allowed contractors to cut corners,” Hsu said during a press conference at the Taipei City Council.
Chou said that Tower No. 15 and almost all the other towers were built on unstable ground where the topsoil was fragile, and they could be damaged like Tower No. 16 in the event of heavy rains or a typhoon.
Hsu said Control Yuan President Wang Chien-shien failed to launch an investigation into the possible corruption and administrative flaws of the involved officials and contractors.
In its latest issue yesterday, the Chinese-language weekly Next Magazine made the same accusations against Ma and members of his municipal administration who handled the construction, including former director of the Public Works Office Lee Shu-chuan (李四川).
In response, Hau yesterday said no city government officials were involved in corruption or embezzlement in the construction of the project, and last night the city government said they would file a lawsuit against the magazine for its false report.
Hau said the city government evaluated the 25 towers every week to ensure the safety and stability of each tower. The city government will seek to resume the service next year.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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