The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday it planned to summon President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) as a witness in a probe into allegations that Prosecutor-General Huang Shih-ming (黃世銘) and the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office Special Investigation Division (SID) illegally monitored an opposition lawmaker’s telephone calls and leaked the content of the wiretaps to Ma.
Citing a gag order, Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office spokesman Huang Mo-hsin (黃謀信) said the office could not discuss its investigative process, while local media reported that the office had contacted the Presidential Office to ask when Ma would be available.
When asked for a response, Presidential Office spokesperson Lee Chia-fei (李佳霏) said the Presidential Office respects the judiciary, but would not comment because of the gag order.
At issue is the SID’s press conference on Sept. 6, during which prosecutors said that Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) had been involved in improper lobbying of then-minister of justice Tseng Yung-fu (曾勇夫) and Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office Head Prosecutor Chen Shou-huang (陳守煌) at the request of Democratic Progressive Party caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘).
Ker allegedly asked Wang to use his influence to prevent prosecutors from appealing Ker’s June 18 acquittal by the Taiwan High Court in a breach of trust case.
Huang Shih-ming told a Sept. 9 press conference that he had gone to Ma’s residence to report on Wang’s involvement on Aug. 31, which was before the investigation had finished. He told a legislative session on Sept. 25 that Ma had asked him to visit his residence again on Sept. 1 to brief him on the details of the Wang case.
On Monday night, Huang Shih-ming told the Chinese-language Apple Daily that Ma had phoned him after the SID had held its Sept. 6 press conference, raising further questions about Ma’s role in pursuing the case.
The legislature’s Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee had earlier on Monday passed a motion to have the SID turn its active cases over to regular prosecutors and not open new cases.
Lee yesterday said that Ma had talked to Huang Shih-ming by telephone “several times” after the SID’s Sept. 6 press conference, but did not dictate what the prosecutor-general should do in the case.
Ma simply asked him to clear up doubts that had been raised over the case, Lee said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Justice Lo Ying-shay (羅瑩雪) said Ma telephoning Huang Shih-ming about the case was not evidence that Ma tried to improperly influence the prosecutor-general.
“It depended on what they had said over the phone. Just now, I called several people. Does that mean that I engaged in undue influence?” Lo said in response to a reporter’s question.
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
SILICON VALLEY HUB: The office would showcase Taiwan’s strengths in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, and help Taiwanese start-ups connect with global opportunities Taiwan has established an office in Palo Alto, one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley in California, aimed at helping Taiwanese technology start-ups gain global visibility, the National Development Council said yesterday. The “Startup Island Taiwan Silicon Valley hub” at No. 299 California Avenue is focused on “supporting start-ups and innovators by providing professional consulting, co-working spaces, and community platforms,” the council said in a post on its Web site. The office is the second overseas start-up hub established by the council, after a similar site was set up in Tokyo in September last year. Representatives from Taiwanese start-ups, local businesses and
‘DETERRENT’: US national security adviser-designate Mike Waltz said that he wants to speed up deliveries of weapons purchased by Taiwan to deter threats from China US president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, affirmed his commitment to peace in the Taiwan Strait during his confirmation hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Hegseth called China “the most comprehensive and serious challenge to US national security” and said that he would aim to limit Beijing’s expansion in the Indo-Pacific region, Voice of America reported. He would also adhere to long-standing policies to prevent miscalculations, Hegseth added. The US Senate Armed Services Committee hearing was the first for a nominee of Trump’s incoming Cabinet, and questions mostly focused on whether he was fit for the
SHARED VALUES: The US, Taiwan and other allies hope to maintain the cross-strait ‘status quo’ to foster regional prosperity and growth, the former US vice president said Former US vice president Mike Pence yesterday vowed to continue to support US-Taiwan relations, and to defend the security and interests of both countries and the free world. At a meeting with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Pence said that the US and Taiwan enjoy strong and continued friendship based on the shared values of freedom, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Such foundations exceed limitations imposed by geography and culture, said Pence, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time. The US and Taiwan have shared interests, and Americans are increasingly concerned about China’s
RSS