The legislative caucuses yesterday were notified about discussing a four-point Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) initiative today, of which only a call for National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) to resign passed the Procedural Committee earlier this month.
The initiative, put forth by TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) on Tuesday for priority discussion, urged the Executive Yuan to request that Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) deliver its list of nominees for National Communications Commission (NCC) director-general, deputy director-general and commission members.
The second suggested that the legislature resolve that Wu should tender his resignation, which passed the Procedural Committee and was officially put on the legislature’s agenda.
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
The TPP caucus raised a separate issue that urged the legislature to officially rebuke Cho for failing in his role as premier and working to undermine the separation of powers.
The TPP caucus also suggested that the legislature’s Discipline Committee launch an investigation into the actions of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), who it said insulted Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) and other legislators, and used his walking stick as a weapon.
Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said that the NCC list was complete, but that it was undergoing administrative processes.
It would be forwarded to the legislature as soon as due process has been observed, she said.
Regarding the suggestion to reprimand the premier for disregarding the separation of powers, an Executive Yuan source, commenting on condition of anonymity, said that the suggestion was itself an overreach of legislative power.
DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said that she respected due observance of procedure, but that the issues discussed lacked legitimacy.
The TPP and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) are using their legislative majority to pick on and bully select people, she said.
Responding to allegations that he used his walking stick as a weapon, Ker said that the legislative session had ended for the day, but TPP and KMT legislators had carried on the session, an act that he said contravened the Constitution, and he had used his walking stick to knock on the table and remind them of the time.
Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung and Taoyuan would issue a decision at 8pm on whether to cancel work and school tomorrow due to forecasted heavy rain, Keelung Mayor Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said today. Hsieh told reporters that absent some pressing reason, the four northern cities would announce the decision jointly at 8pm. Keelung is expected to receive between 300mm and 490mm of rain in the period from 2pm today through 2pm tomorrow, Central Weather Administration data showed. Keelung City Government regulations stipulate that school and work can be canceled if rain totals in mountainous or low-elevation areas are forecast to exceed 350mm in
TRAFFIC SAFETY RULES: A positive result in a drug test would result in a two-year license suspension for the driver and vehicle, and a fine of up to NT$180,000 The Ministry of Transportation and Communications is to authorize police to conduct roadside saliva tests by the end of the year to deter people from driving while under the influence of narcotics, it said yesterday. The ministry last month unveiled a draft of amended regulations governing traffic safety rules and penalties, which included provisions empowering police to conduct mandatory saliva tests on drivers. While currently rules authorize police to use oral fluid testing kits for signs of drug use, they do not establish penalties for noncompliance or operating procedures for officers to follow, the ministry said. The proposed changes to the regulations require
EVA Airways president Sun Chia-ming (孫嘉明) and other senior executives yesterday bowed in apology over the death of a flight attendant, saying the company has begun improving its health-reporting, review and work coordination mechanisms. “We promise to handle this matter with the utmost responsibility to ensure safer and healthier working conditions for all EVA Air employees,” Sun said. The flight attendant, a woman surnamed Sun (孫), died on Friday last week of undisclosed causes shortly after returning from a work assignment in Milan, Italy, the airline said. Chinese-language media reported that the woman fell ill working on a Taipei-to-Milan flight on Sept. 22
1.4nm WAFERS: While TSMC is gearing up to expand its overseas production, it would also continue to invest in Taiwan, company chairman and CEO C.C. Wei said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) has applied for permission to construct a new plant in the Central Taiwan Science Park (中部科學園區), which it would use for the production of new high-speed wafers, the National Science and Technology Council said yesterday. The council, which supervises three major science parks in Taiwan, confirmed that the Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau had received an application on Friday from TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, to commence work on the new A14 fab. A14 technology, a 1.4 nanometer (nm) process, is designed to drive artificial intelligence transformation by enabling faster computing and greater power
RSS