The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday that the government is “on the verge of collapse,” citing a string of poorly handled legal cases and President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration’s poor performance on the economy, and demanded a Cabinet reshuffle.
“The judiciary has only gone after pan-green politicians and turned a blind eye toward pan-blue politicians, ignored those cases that should have been investigated and carelessly handled the fabricated cases,” DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said.
During the past month, Su said, Yunlin County Commissioner Su Chi-fen (蘇治芬), DPP deputy secretary-general Lee Chun-yi (李俊毅) and former DPP secretary-general Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁) have all been cleared of wrongdoing in corruption cases.
Meanwhile, prosecutors dismissed a corruption case centering around rock musical Dreamers (夢想家), which celebrated the centenary of the Republic of China and cost NT$215 million (US$7.15 million), as well as the role of Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), who served as premier, in the so-called Yu Chang case, Su said.
The investigation into former Executive Yuan secretary-general Lin Yi-shih’s (林益世) corruption case has been too slow and many people have begun to question the prosecutors’ motives, he added.
Additionally, the Control Yuan, which represents one of five separate powers in the Constitution, has become a “hired thug” to repress the opposition, he said, referring to the Control Yuan’s insistence on investigating former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who was accused of improprieties in the establishment of Yu Chang in 2007, but was cleared of wrongdoing last month.
“None of the prosecutors who abused their powers were held accountable and several branches of government have been dysfunctional. I would say this government is on the verge of collapse,” Su said. “All branches of government have failed to carry out their constitutional duties and meet people’s expectations. This is a bad omen and a precursor of a major collapse of government.”
Separately yesterday, the DPP filed a new complaint over the Dreamers case to the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office Special Investigation Division, demanding the prosecutors reopen their investigation of former Council of Cultural Affairs minister Emile Sheng (盛治仁), Ma and Wu.
“We think the government officials obviously violated the Government Procurement Act (政府採購法) and leaked confidential information in the bidding process of the rock musical,” DPP Legislator Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said.
DPP lawyer Huang Di-ying (黃帝穎) said that according to the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on Tuesday, Taiwan Association of Theater Technology (TATT, 台灣技術劇場協會), which won a contract in the case, knew confidential information about the public bidding, but prosecutors did not look into who leaked the confidential information to the TATT, he said.
Additional reporting by Rich Chang
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
RSS