President Chen Shui-bian
Chen and Lee went to National Taiwan University Hospital, where Yu's mother, Huang Shou-chu
Cabinet spokesman Chuang Suo-hang (莊碩漢) said yesterday that the hospital informed the premier that the condition of his mother, who was suffering from lung cancer, had begun to deteriorate at 3:40pm on Friday.
"The premier canceled everything on his schedule and rushed to the hospital," Chuang said.
Huang died at 7:30pm. According to the hospital, the cancer had spread to her liver and she suffered complications including pneumonia and pleural effusion, which led to the failure of her heart and lungs. She was 78.
The president visited Huang at the hospital two weeks ago after the premier had offered to resign over the government's about-face on reform of farmers' and fishermen's associations.
Yu expressed his gratitude to the president and Vice President Annette Lu
Yu's father died when he was 14 years old. Yu, as the oldest child, dropped out of school to help his mother earn enough money for the family.
The premier once recalled that he often studied on the back of a cow. He was 38 when he finally graduated from university.
Yu said that when he was campaigning as a provincial councilor candidate in 1981, his mother questioned whether he would remember his humble background if he were elected.
"Those who have the fortune to be provincial councilors all have their stars in heaven. What about you?" Huang asked him.
After becoming premier, Yu once said that without his mother's support, it would have been impossible for him to survive his years as a youth.
Yu said his interest in public affairs was largely nurtured by his mother.
"As a child, my mother often asked me to help with household chores and sent me to our neighbors' houses. As a result, I had a lot of opportunities to get involved in neighborhood affairs," Yu said.
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
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