Council of Agriculture Chairman Peng Tso-kwei (
Peng offered his resignation to Siew last Tuesday after hearing that President Lee Teng-hui (
The main difference between the two versions of the bill was that the KMT caucus version allowed houses to be built on recently purchased individual plots of farmland.
Peng opposed this as the thin end of the wedge of commercial development of agricultural land, with the possible erosion of Taiwan's agricultural business and the island's environment.
The change is believed to have been made to win more support from farmers for the KMT in the upcoming presidential election.
Peng met briefly with Siew yesterday after having met with Vice President Lien Chan (
Government spokesman Chao Yi (趙怡) said yesterday that Peng's gesture at least indicated he might reconsider his resignation and continue defending his agriculture land-use policy within the Cabinet.
"It seems like there is a slim chance for Peng to change his position on resigning. However, the final decision depends on the way the situation develops this weekend," Chao said.
In fact, before meeting with Siew, Lien had already met with Peng on Friday at the Presidential Office.
An official who asked not to be named said that, since Peng still has no idea which version of the agriculture development bill the legislature will pass, there is no legitimate base for Peng to insist on quitting his job.
Siew yesterday was vague on who might take over the COA should Peng insist on resigning.
"I haven't given any deep though to that yet. Besides, how could I expect Peng to stay after you [referring to the media] said things like I `had already endorsed his resignation'?'' Siew said.
While the Cabinet has made efforts to engender a "family gathering" atmosphere to keep Peng in the group, it has also made plans to hold a large-scale "family reunion" celebration on Thursday to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the KMT government's removal to Taiwan.
Cabinet Secretary General Hsieh Shen-shan (
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol yesterday declared emergency martial law, accusing the opposition of being “anti-state forces intent on overthrowing the regime” amid parliamentary wrangling over a budget bill. “To safeguard a liberal South Korea from the threats posed by North Korea’s communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements plundering people’s freedom and happiness, I hereby declare emergency martial law,” Yoon said in a live televised address to the nation. “With no regard for the livelihoods of the people, the opposition party has paralysed governance solely for the sake of impeachments, special investigations, and shielding their leader from justice,” he
CHINA: The activities come amid speculation that Beijing might launch military exercises in response to Lai’s recent visit to Pacific allies The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday said China had nearly doubled the number of its warships operating around the nation in the previous 24 hours, ahead of what security sources expect would be a new round of war games. China’s military activities come amid speculation Beijing might organize military drills around the nation in response to President William Lai’s (賴清德) recent visit to Pacific allies, including stops in Hawaii and Guam, a US territory. Lai returned from the week-long trip on Friday night. Beijing has held two rounds of war games around Taiwan this year, and sends ships and military planes
China is trying to set a "red line" for the incoming Trump administration and US allies by stepping up military activities in the region, a senior Taiwan security official said, including likely war games this weekend around Taiwan. China has held two rounds of war games around Taiwan so far this year, and its forces operate nearby on a daily basis. The official confirmed concerns expressed by other security officials in the region who have previously told Reuters that China could launch new drills to coincide with Taiwan President William Lai's (賴清德) trip to the Pacific this week which included visits to
‘UNITED FRONT’: Beijing provides Internet ‘influencers’ with templates and directions, such as criticizing Taiwanese politicians, the rapper said Taiwanese rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源) in a video showed how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) bribes Taiwanese online influencers in its “united front” efforts to shape Taiwanese opinions. The video was made by YouTuber “Pa Chiung (八炯)” and published online on Friday. Chen in the video said that China’s United Front Work Department provided him with several templates and materials — such as making news statements — with some mentioning Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politician Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) and asking him to write a song criticizing the Democratic Progressive Party. He said he had produced
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