The Financial Supervisory Com-mission (FSC) yesterday approved Lee Chin-chen's (李進誠) resignation from his post as a counselor, after he was indicted on Tuesday for alleged involvement in an illegal "vulture" investors group.
Lee decided to resign to minimize damage to the commission after the indictment, and to prepare to defend his innocence with all his might in the upcoming trial, the commission's spokesman Lin Chung-cheng (
Lee was originally head of the FSC's Examination Bureau, but was transferred after coming under fire for allegedly being involved in insider trading.
PHOTO: CHANG CHIA-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
Prior to approving Lee's resignation, the FSC had announced that he would be suspended from duty. The FSC said inappropriate behavior -- including meeting and partying with Lin Ming-da (林明達), a suspect in the illegal trading of Power Quotient shares, in improper places such as hostess bars -- had led to a dereliction of duty and met the requirements for suspension.
According to Article 2 of the Law on Discipline of Civil Servants (公務人員懲戒法), public employees who are derelict in their duty face punishments including being removed from their post or suspension of duties.
The decision to suspend Lee marked a reversal of the commission's stance the day before, and came amid mounting public criticism.
The day before, the commission had said it would not suspend Lee until he was found guilty by the courts.
The commission will use high moral standards to evaluate the qualification of candidates for the post of director-general of the commission's Examination Bureau in the future, Lin said.
He did not elaborate on whether the regulator had found a suitable successor.
Earlier yesterday, two Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers requested the resignation of FSC Chairman Kong Jaw-sheng (龔照勝), because he had hired Lee.
DPP Legislator Wang Shih-chien (
Wang threatened to launch a signature drive to request Premier Frank Hsieh (
DPP Legislator Charles Chiang (
Chiang also questioned Lee's qualifications for his former job, alleging that he had acquired the position because of a "powerful individual."
The premier said yesterday he did not possess the authorization to relieve Lee of his post but he would ask Lee's supervisor to make proper "arrangements" as soon as possible.
"Lee is a government official who was hired after he passed the national exam so the premier is not authorized to relieve him. But, his [Lee's] supervisor at the FSC can reshuffle and transfer or suspend him from his job," said Government Information Office Minister Pasuya Yao (姚文智), who relayed Hsieh's remarks to the media at a press briefing after the weekly Cabinet meeting yesterday morning.
Additional reporting by Jimmy Chuang
Several Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) officials including Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) are to be summoned for questioning and then transferred to prosecutors for holding an illegal assembly in Taipei last night, the Taipei Police said today. Chu and two others hosted an illegal assembly and are to be requested to explain their actions, the Taipei City Police Department's Zhongzheng (中正) First Precinct said, referring to a protest held after Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹), KMT Taipei's chapter director, and several other KMT staffers were questioned for alleged signature forgery in recall petitions against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators. Taipei prosecutors had filed
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday established a friendship group with their counterparts in Ukraine to promote parliamentary exchanges between the two countries. A ceremony in Taipei for the Taiwan-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Association, initiated by DPP Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷), was attended by lawmakers and officials, including Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) and European Economic and Trade Office in Taiwan Director Lutz Gullner. The increasingly dire situation in Ukraine is a global concern, and Taiwan cannot turn its back when the latter is in need of help, as the two countries share many common values and interests,