The Cabinet yesterday expressed the hope that National Taiwan University (NTU) would restart the process to select a new president and not let the multiple contentious issues that have arisen following a school committee’s election of Kuan Chung-ming (管中閔), whom the government refuses to accept, slow down its trajectory toward progress and advancement.
The university should move forward on the matter after the Ministry of Education sent an official letter to the school asking it to remedy and then restart the selection process, Executive Yuan spokesman Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) said.
Addressing criticism of the government’s focus on alleged flaws in the process used to elect Kuan, Hsu said that multiple regulations and principles, including an amendment to NTU rules allowing its professors and administrators to simultaneously work in the private sector, require the university to sign an industry-academia collaboration agreement and give written consent before an individual can assume a position at a private company.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
It is therefore clear that Kuan broke the rules when he assumed a position at Taiwan Mobile Co without the university’s approval, he said, adding that he hoped the media would “stop distorting” the truth in reports on the issue.
NTU is expected to hold a university affairs committee meeting today to address the Kuan issue and other matters related to the selection of a president.
NTU Student Association president Lin Yen-ting (林彥廷) and about 200 students gathered in front of the university library yesterday afternoon to urge the school to choose a president whose selection is uncontested.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
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A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it