Another source of friction between the central government and the Taipei City Government yesterday led Vice President Annette Lu (
"Every other couple of days, Mayor Ma takes the lead in rubbing up against [his] superiors and, to a certain degree, undermining democratic ethics, and he should not do this," Lu said.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
Lu was responding to a Taipei City Government request, citing complaints from the public, that traffic around President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) official residence had been disrupted because of barricades installed as part of upgraded security measures.
The city government demanded that the barricades be removed, otherwise it would consider imposing a fine for impeding the flow of traffic.
But Lu took the threat more personally.
"I think it is regrettable that Ma, a Harvard alumnus who enjoys considerable popular support, can openly smear the head of state to such a provocative degree," she said.
However, she urged the agencies in charge of security to negotiate with the city government's Department of Transportation as soon as possible to ensure that the security of the head of state is safeguarded while ensuring a convenient environment for pedestrians and traffic.
Ma said the barricades had been involved in more than 60 traffic accidents in the area since March, when the security measures were put in place.
"We have the responsibility to forward the public's complaints to our superiors," Ma said.
Citing the Assembly and Parade Law (集會遊行法), Presidential Office spokesman Chen Wen-tsung (陳文宗) yesterday said the area surrounding the president's residency was off limits for assemblies or parades.
Yet at least 42 demonstrations had taken place in the vicinity of the president's residence since March 20, the day of the presidential election, in addition to various gatherings on a smaller scale, he said.
"Therefore, after an assessment by the security agencies, it was felt necessary to increase the security measures in the area," Chen Wen-tsung said.
"We had no alternative but to take this action. We would not resort to this measure if the safety of our head of state wasn't being threatened," he said, adding that the measures had been applied in a manner that would minimize inconvenience for passing vehicles and pedestrians.
Noting the concerns, Chen Wen-tsung yesterday said the agencies would meet soon to decide whether or not to scale down the level of security in the area.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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