Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday called on the directors of Taipei Agricultural Products Marketing Co to promptly elect a new president to prevent damage to the firm’s reputation amid soaring produce prices.
Ko made the comment in response to reporters’ queries when inspecting a long-term care program the Taipei Department of Health has implemented at the Lanzhou housing complex in Datong District (大同).
Asked to clarify a remark he made on Wednesday about the firm having “broken a promise,” Ko said that directors from different backgrounds should put aside their differences and end the infighting that has delayed the election of a new president.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
“The company was established to ensure that consumers could buy high-quality produce at reasonable prices. With vegetable prices rising nationwide, [the directors] should waste no time in electing a new president and general manager,” Ko said, adding that he was “very upset” that the company failed to elect a new president on Wednesday.
“I own the company’s premises. I signed you up to run the company on the city government’s behalf, not to engage in an internal power play,” he said.
The firm elected three new directors on Wednesday, but failed to elect a new president, with the Taipei City Government, the Council of Agriculture and the “Chang faction” each securing one seat on the board.
The Chang faction refers to board members affiliated with former Yunlin County commissioner Chang Jung-wei (張榮味) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), who has strong ties with farmers’ associations in central Taiwan that provide produce for the company.
The company’s funding comes from a mix of public and private sources, with the Taipei City Government and the Council of Agriculture together contributing 45.5 percent and the Taiwan Provincial Fruit Marketing Cooperative, farmers’ associations and vegetable growers providing the rest.
As the president, who chairs the board meetings, nominates the firm’s general manager, who directly oversees the company’s operations, Ko and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) had reportedly engineered a plan to remove general manager Hau Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) by helping director Lin Chiu-hui (林秋慧) get elected president.
However, as Ko and the DPP only secured two seats on the seven-member board in Wednesday’s election, Lin’s chances of being elected president are now uncertain.
Asked to respond to Lin’s comment that said if she were elected president, she would not nominate a new general manager and would let Han complete his term, Ko said that it was Lin’s personal opinion.
“My one demand is that the company settle its staffing issues as soon as possible. Do not allow internal politics to affect people’s livelihoods,” Ko said.
Ko said that he would meet with Council of Agriculture Minister Tsao Chi-hung (曹啟鴻) to discuss their strategy regarding the company.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
RSS