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 first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS