Too much publicity appears to have convinced Chen Guangbiao (陳光標), a Chinese tycoon distributing hundreds of millions of NT dollars to poor people nationwide, to rein in his high-profile style.
The last straw apparently came yesterday, on day three of his weeklong “Thanksgiving” tour of Taiwan, when a young man kneeled in front of him while having lunch, asking him to donate one of his red envelopes containing at least NT$10,000 (US$345) in cash.
Chen refused; in an unexpected turn for a man that has already given three envelopes worth NT$70,000 to an elderly woman who waited outside his hotel and another NT$20,000 to a young man on the street with his niece on Thursday.
“He’s a strong young fellow. He should be creating business with an entrepreneurial spirit. I didn’t give [the red envelope] to him because it would have harmed him, not helped him,” Chen said.
Chen and his family arrived on Wednesday as part of a controversial donation tour in Taiwan, flanked by other Chinese industrialists. Chen said he was committed to making NT$500 million in donations, through personal meetings with recipients and other donations to charities and non-profit organizations. He is also reportedly in Taiwan to handle a business deal that he said would return 40 percent of its profits.
Chen and members of the entourage have maintained that they wish to keep the trip “low-profile,” despite making media appearances, photo-ops and granting interview requests at almost every stop of his itinerary yesterday.
A large button on each of their lapels read: “This is a low-profile trip.”
Chen said he wouldn’t be handing more money out on the street and that the remaining amount would instead be donated to a charitable organization.
His actions, markedly toned down since his arrival, when he reportedly insisted on meeting personally with all recipients, still drew heated -questions by -lawmakers across party lines, who called some of the behavior Chen encountered “shameful.”
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Huang Wei-cher (黃偉哲), meanwhile, told a press conference that Chen, instead of showing the best in people, “appears to have brought out the worst.”
“I guess even in the richest of Middle Eastern countries, you will see the poor and the disadvantaged; it’s not that surprising,” Huang said. “Chen’s efforts, while laudable, should be better thought out.”
His itinerary yesterday included a visit to the tomb of late pop singer Teresa Teng (鄧麗君), where Chen shed tears.
DPP lawmakers have expressed concern that Chen may be violating the terms of his business visa when he reportedly skipped a business meeting yesterday.
Trip itineraries by Chinese visitors are tightly controlled, but Chen has insisted that the business deals will be completed.
Meanwhile, the New Taipei City (新北市) Government yesterday confirmed that a local donor gave NT$10 million to the city anonymously in the past few days.
“He was very low-key,” said Lee Li-chen (李麗圳), director of the city’s Department of Social Affairs. “He used cash and asked that the bank simply send it over.”
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
STEERING FAILURE: The first boat of its class is experiencing teething issues as it readies for acceptance by the navy, according to a recent story about rudder failure The Hai Kun (海鯤), the nation’s first locally built submarine, allegedly suffered a total failure of stern hydraulic systems during the second round of sea acceptance trials on June 26, and sailors were forced to manually operate the X-rudder to turn the submarine and return to port, news Web site Mirror Daily reported yesterday. The report said that tugboats following the Hai Kun assisted the submarine in avoiding collisions with other ships due to the X-rudder malfunctioning. At the time of the report, the submarine had completed its trials and was scheduled to begin diving and surfacing tests in shallow areas. The X-rudder,
RSS