The Control Yuan yesterday summoned Prosecutor-General Huang Shih-ming (黃世銘) for questioning for allegedly leaking details to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of a investigation into a wiretapped conversation, which led to allegations of improper lobbying by Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), adding that it did not rule out calling Ma in for questioning over the nation’s biggest political scandal in years.
Control Yuan members Hung Te-hsuan (洪德旋) and Frank Wu (吳豐山) told a press conference in Taipei yesterday afternoon that they had summoned Huang for an interrogation at 9am and that the three-hour session focused mainly on Huang’s meeting with Ma at the president’s residence on Aug. 31.
“Huang was also questioned over the Special Investigation Division (SID) of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office’s unusual decision to scrap its Sept. 2 plan to question all parties involved in the alleged improper lobbying case,” Hung and Wu said.
Critics have said the closed-door meeting between Ma and Huang “reeked of conspiracy,” as the SID subsequently canceled Wang’s scheduled questioning without good cause and did not conclude its probe into Wang’s alleged improper lobbying until Sept. 5.
Huang also waited until Sept. 6 — the day Wang left for Malaysia to attend his daughter’s wedding — to hold a press conference accusing the legislative speaker of lobbying then-minister of justice Tseng Yung-fu (曾勇夫) and Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office Head Prosecutor Chen Shou-huang (陳守煌) on behalf of Democratic Progressive Party caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) in a legal matter.
Hung said Huang did not dodge questions and was cooperative during the questioning, but added that no conclusions had been made as they were still trying to ascertain the truth and had yet to compare and analyze concerned parties’ statements.
Regarding the likelihood of Ma being summoned for questioning, Hung said he did not rule out such a possibility, but it required further discussion to determine whether it was appropriate to term such a session as “questioning” since it was the legislature that had the power to impeach presidents.
Wu said the Control Yuan planned to question Huang again in the near future because it did not have the chance to thoroughly look into all the materials related to the case before yesterday’s questioning, because the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office borrowed a large part of the documentation, which it did not return to the Ministry of Justice until Wednesday.
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
Taiwan Travelogue (臺灣漫遊錄), which earlier this week became the first Taiwanese novel to win the International Booker Prize, is to be adapted into a television series through a Taiwan-Japan coproduction, producer Chang Chen-yu (張辰漁) said yesterday. Chang, a producer at World Softest Production Film Co, wrote on Facebook that the company had been searching for projects with international appeal that retain a strong Taiwanese identity after colleagues and Japanese partners strongly recommended the novel. After reading the book, Chang said he immediately decided to pursue the screen rights. “A great story has the power to transcend time and borders, and connect countless people,”
RSS