Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday said that the Taipei City Government has enacted a new standard operating procedure to govern build-operate-transfer (BOT) projects, which would set a threshold on the date when profits generated by BOT projects become government revenue, thereby providing a better protection for the projects against potential financial risks.
Ko made the remark during an interview with reporters, saying that he saw the procedure as a solution to BOT projects’ long contract terms, which can last up to between 50 and 70 years.
Ko said the procedure was designed within the supernormal profit concept and is played out by both sides of a contract setting a threshold on the profits made by a BOT project.
When the profits pass the threshold, the city government and the enterprise at the other end of the BOT contract start to share the profit in a ratio which both parties agreed on, he said.
“Past BOT contracts included terms that were more reserved, because it is hard to predict how successful a project would be,” Ko said, adding that the new procedure would help reduce potential losses associated with such uncertainties.
When asked whether he would remove the Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Ni Chung-hwa (倪重華) from office, Ko said: “No.”
Ni has been embroiled in controversy after news surfaced that he allegedly used his influence to secure accommodation for foreign film crews who attended this year’s Golden Horse Awards at the Mandarin Oriental luxury hotel.
Ko said that the city government would introduce a rating system whose grading criteria would include city government employees’ satisfaction with himself and with the head of the agency where they work, as well as a mutual evaluation between agency heads and Taipei city councilors.
The system would also receive opinions from the public, Ko said, giving the example of unions rating the Department of Labor and Department of Economic Development.
Asked whether he has put Ni on his “watch list,” Ko said: “He should be able to tell how he is doing when he receives his score.”
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS