The Presidential Office yesterday said that it has formed a task force to examine the state of its security after a driver crashed his truck into the front gate of the office building in Taipei earlier that day.
Chang Te-cheng (張德正), 41, drove the 35-tonne vehicle into the building at 5:05am, police said.
Chang was driving the truck at 72kph and it took him five seconds to travel the approximately 208m from Huaining Street to the Presidential Office on Chongqing S Road, Taipei City Zhongzheng First Precinct Police chief Fang Yang-ning (方仰寧) said.
The Presidential Office immediately implemented security measures and informed President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who is on a state visit to Sao Tome and Principe, about the incident.
Later, Presidential Office Secretary-General Timothy Yang (楊進添) presided over a closed-door meeting with the National Security Bureau, the National Police Agency and related government branches in the afternoon aimed at strengthening the security around the office.
At a press conference held afterward, Yang said the task force would examine the security measures in place across from the Presidential Office on Ketagalan Boulevard and the Presidential Residence on Aikuo E Road.
It will then present a report on reinforcing those measures, he added.
“President Ma is paying great attention to the incident. He instructed all relevant government agencies to follow standard procedures in handling the issue and assist in the investigation to ascertain the suspect’s motive,” he said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) spokesman Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) yesterday said the security around the Presidential Office was loose, adding that the truck could have been carrying explosives.
DPP Legislator Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) accused the building’s security team of neglecting its duties, saying that the system for monitoring all vehicles passing through Jingfu Gate (景福門) on Ketagalan Boulevard had failed, despite a ban barring trucks and trailers from driving into the Boai Special District (博愛特區), where the office is located.
Yang responded to the criticism at the press conference, defending the military police’s handling of the matter and saying that they had adopted the necessary measures, including closing a bullet-proof glass door to protect the front gate, to minimize the damage.
Fang said preliminary investigations had concluded that the incident was premeditated, but prosecutors have ruled out politics as a motive.
Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), who was visiting Greater Taichung yesterday, expressed regret over the incident, but stated his confidence in security officials’ ability to reinforce safety measures.
Additional reporting by Rich Chang
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS