Employees of state-run Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信) staged a protest at an inauguration ceremony in honor of the company's new chairman yesterday, urging the company to ensure workers' benefits and not to sell the telecom giant's shares to conglomerates.
"The new chairman should make a commitment to retain employees' working rights," said Lu Yen-chung (
Specifically, the new chairman should keep workers' salary levels unchanged and promise no further job cuts, Lu said.
On Wednesday, the Cabinet appointed former vice minister of transportation and communications Hochen Tan (
The union opposed the appointment, saying Mao is qualified for his position and there is no reason to replace him.
The union also said that the sale of Chunghwa shares should be open to individual investors, not just conglomerates. The telecom giant last month sold 1.3 billion shares valued at NT$50.3 per share, of which rival Taiwan Cellular Corp (台灣大哥大) purchased 575 million shares, or 5.75 percent.
The government holds 81.5 percent of the remaining shares in Chunghwa and plans to sell more shares to own less than 49 percent of the company by the end of this year.
According to Lu, once Taiwan Cellular links up with other groups to buy into the telecom giant, they are entitled to a seat on its board.
"This may undermine our company's bottom line," Lu said. "Therefore, we protest the government's decision to sell shares to certain conglomerates, particularly competitors."
Private ownership
In response, Hochen said that increasing Chunghwa's private ownership is his top priority.
"Selling Chunghwa's shares is the government's policy and I will try my best to achieve that goal," he said.
Chunghwa may consider finding strategic partners to buy its shares, Hochen said. "We do not exclude the possibility [of cooperating with other players]," he said, adding that Taiwan Cellular is not the best choice for a strategic partner.
"Taiwan Cellular purchased our shares through public auction, a process which is not under our control," he said.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications has submitted a new share sale plan to the Executive Yuan for approval, according to a section chief, surnamed Wang.
Trading auction
"We plan to offer a small portion, about 5 percent, in an after-hours trading auction to local individuals after the Lunar New Year," Wang said, adding that during a second-phase auction a larger proportion of shares, about 13 percent, will be offered at a public auction.
The ministry is expected to finalize the exact amount of shares for sale pending market conditions, he said.
In addition to domestic sales, the government also plans to sell Chunghwa shares via American depositary receipts the first half of this year.
In an effort to placate union concerns regarding rivals gaining seats on the Chunghwa board, the ministry may consider excluding competitors from the public auction, Wang said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
VIOLATION OF NORMS: China’s CCTV broadcast claimed that Beijing could use Interpol to issue arrest warrants, which the MAC slammed as an affront to order The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday condemned the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for attempts to intimidate Taiwanese through “transnational repression.” The council issued the remarks after state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) yesterday during a news broadcast aired a video targeting Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋), threatening him with “cross-border repression” and saying: “Stop now, or you will be next,” in what Taipei officials said was an attempt to intimidate not only Shen, but also the broader Taiwanese public. The MAC in a statement condemned the threat, accusing Beijing of trying to instill fear and self-censorship among Taiwanese and
RSS