Following a remark denouncing the nation's lottery frenzy as a "social mudslide," Vice President Annette Lu (
The comment -- which Lu made on Saturday -- was interpreted as an indication that the government might rescind its approval of the lottery as it did in 1990 when it made TaipeiBank put a halt to a similar lottery after only three drawings.
In response to the speculation, Lu stressed yesterday that she did not intend to intervene in the government's approval of the lottery. She said she was just encouraging Taiwanese people to "say things, do things and make money with their consciences," instead of dreaming of becoming rich overnight.
Lu said that she hopes the public will carefully consider the issue. "Many countries have a lottery, but Taiwan is too crazy about it," Lu said.
In a move to ease lottery fans' worry that TaipeiBank may stop issuing lottery, Minister of Finance Lee Yung-san (李庸三) yesterday sought to reassure the public that the lottery would continue.
"The lottery is overheated, but it is a temporary phenomenon," Lee said. "It [lottery fever] will fade away after a while."
But he did advise the public to stay focused on work and he asked TaipeiBank to review its advertising policies.
After Lu's comment, Richard Yang (
Enthusiasm over the lottery has drawn fire from critics who claim it encourages gambling and get-rich-quick schemes instead of hard work.
The critics also charge that playing the lottery too much has undesirable side effects such as decreasing productivity.
A Chinese aircraft carrier group entered Japan’s economic waters over the weekend, before exiting to conduct drills involving fighter jets, the Japanese Ministry of Defense said yesterday. The Liaoning aircraft carrier, two missile destroyers and one fast combat supply ship sailed about 300km southwest of Japan’s easternmost island of Minamitori on Saturday, a ministry statement said. It was the first time a Chinese aircraft carrier had entered that part of Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), a ministry spokesman said. “We think the Chinese military is trying to improve its operational capability and ability to conduct operations in distant areas,” the spokesman said. China’s growing
Taiwan yesterday denied Chinese allegations that its military was behind a cyberattack on a technology company in Guangzhou, after city authorities issued warrants for 20 suspects. The Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau earlier yesterday issued warrants for 20 people it identified as members of the Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command (ICEFCOM). The bureau alleged they were behind a May 20 cyberattack targeting the backend system of a self-service facility at the company. “ICEFCOM, under Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, directed the illegal attack,” the warrant says. The bureau placed a bounty of 10,000 yuan (US$1,392) on each of the 20 people named in
Nine retired generals from Taiwan, Japan and the US have been invited to participate in a tabletop exercise hosted by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation tomorrow and Wednesday that simulates a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan in 2030, the foundation said yesterday. The five retired Taiwanese generals would include retired admiral Lee Hsi-min (李喜明), joined by retired US Navy admiral Michael Mullen and former chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces general Shigeru Iwasaki, it said. The simulation aims to offer strategic insights into regional security and peace in the Taiwan Strait, it added. Foundation chair Huang Huang-hsiung
PUBLIC WARNING: The two students had been tricked into going to Hong Kong for a ‘high-paying’ job, which sent them to a scam center in Cambodia Police warned the public not to trust job advertisements touting high pay abroad following the return of two college students over the weekend who had been trafficked and forced to work at a cyberscam center in Cambodia. The two victims, surnamed Lee (李), 18, and Lin (林), 19, were interviewed by police after landing in Taiwan on Saturday. Taichung’s Chingshui Police Precinct said in a statement yesterday that the two students are good friends, and Lin had suspended her studies after seeing the ad promising good pay to work in Hong Kong. Lee’s grandfather on Thursday reported to police that Lee had sent
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