President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen asked that Su "take good care" of the problem and mete out punishment if necessary.
He also asked Yu to discuss the possibility of revamping exiting laws within the DPP caucus to make it mandatory to publish information on financial institutions with extravagant bad loans.
"I am totally baffled by the regulation. Why cannot the identity of the individuals who maliciously pilage financial institutions be made public? Why must it be the government and the public who are left to deal with the problems, while those who are responsible get away with it?" he asked.
Chen made the remarks during a press conference held in Managua, Nicaragua. He was visiting the nation's ally in Central America to attend the inauguration of Nicaraguan president-elect Daniel Ortega yesterday.
Yu is part of Chen's delegation in Nicaragua.
Two subsidiaries of the Rebar Asia Pacific Group (
The bank was taken over by the government through the Central Deposit Insurance Corp last Friday, causing a public uproar over alleged misuse of taxpayer's money.
Rebar Group chairman Wang You-theng (
Chen then commented on the fairness and utility of using taxpayer money to deal with the situation.
"The government must listen to the grievances of the people and bow humbly before them," he said.
On a separate issue, replying to a question about the constitutionality of prosecutors questioning the president, Chen said that it was open for debate and that the problem lies with the system rather than the person.
Chen caused a stir by relinquishing his presidential prerogative and accepting to be questioned by prosecutors investigating the alleged misuse of his "state affairs fund."
The DPP caucus has requested that the Council of Grand Justices determine whether prosecutors violated Article 52 of the Constitution, which grants immunity to the president except in case of sedition or treason.
While the Taipei District Court again requested that the Presidential Office present by today documents relating to the fund -- part of which Chen claims to have used for matters of secret diplomacy -- Chen said he would let the Presidential Office deal with the matter.
The office has refused to comply with the court's first request last month.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
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