A Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker who accused Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Sun Ta-chien (孫大千) told a press conference that DPP Legislator Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) had spent half of her special allowance fund, totaling NT$1.8 million (US$54,644), in paying back debts when she served as director of the Information Department and director of Cultural Affairs for Kaohsiung City Government.
"When Kuan held those positions, half of her allowance was wired directly into her personal account, in the same way as Ma. We ask Kuan to explain how she used the money," Sun said.
Tainan City Councilor Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介), a KMT member, said that Kuan's husband Hsu Yang-ming (許陽明) was also doing the same with his special allowance fund when he was Tainan deputy mayor.
Hsieh also accused Hsu of occupying a room in a dormitory, which the city government operates as a profit-making residence, without paying rent while he served in the city government.
In response, Kuan said that Sun's charges were insulting to her.
She admitted that half of her special allowance was wired into her personal account, but said that was how the Kaohsiung City Government dealt with allowances and that she spent all of the money on official expenditure.
"There are no problems with my special allowance. I'm clean," she said, but did not present further details to prove that she had spent the money on official expenditure.
DPP Legislator Hsu Kuo-yung (
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
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