A borough chief yesterday sued Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) for allegedly failing to properly maintain facilities that could have prevented a massive flood when Typhoon Fanapi hit the city.
Benhe borough (本和里) chief Lin Chi-mei (林紀美) said he had collected 1,200 signatures in support of the initiative to sue Chen and city government officials, and filed a complaint with prosecutors demanding state compensation for loss of or damage to properties.
Both Chen and Lin are from the Democratic Progressive Party. However, Lin, who has not received the party’s nod, is running as an independent for re-election as borough chief.
More than 1,700 households and 600 cars were inundated during the typhoon on Sept. 19, Lin said, adding that the principal reason was a malfunction of water pumps installed in the Benhe Water Detention Pond.
“The Kaohsiung City Government did not conduct regular maintenance of the water pumps,” he said.
Accused of “dereliction of duty,” Chen said she welcomed an investigation into claims that the water pumps were out of order during the typhoon.
Chen added that she would not cover up any mistake committed by city government officials in terms of maintenance and operations of the water pumps.
Chen and the city government maintain that the rain accumulated too quickly during the typhoon, overwhelming the drains.
In related news, Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said residents living in areas flooded by Fanapi would receive subsidies from the central government to install waterproof gates.
Responding to the appeal by Chen that the central government provide compensation for cars inundated during the storm, Wu said the Executive Yuan would look into the matter.
Chen has requested NT$1.06 billion (US$33.9 million) from the Executive Yuan in compensation, saying she hoped the central government would follow a precedent set in 1998, when Kaohsiung residents, with Wu serving as mayor then, received subsidies for cars damaged by floodwater.
However, the Executive Yuan issued a press release later yesterday rejecting Chen’s request.
The Executive Yuan rejected Chen’s claim that Wu had obtained a sum of money from the central government to offer compensation for people whose vehicles were damaged by the floods in 1998.
Wu requested NT$92 million from the central government, but received only NT$49.2 million, which was used to repair water-pumping and fire-fighting equipment and not distributed as compensation, it said.
It said that motorists whose cars or motorcycles were damaged in the flood could apply to get a refund for their license tax — calculated by multiplying the tax by the number of days during which their cars or motorcycles were under repair and then dividing the result by 365.
The Executive Yuan added that money used to repair flood-damaged cars or motorcycles — up to a maximum of NT$150,000 — can be used as a tax deductible when they file their annual income tax.
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
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
RSS