A 26-year-old woman became the acting chief of Dalin Township (大林) in Chiayi County on Tuesday after taking over the position from her mother, who was sentenced to a three-month jail term after being convicted on vote-buying charges.
Huang Chen-yu (黃貞瑜) assumed the post in a takeover ceremony presided over by Lin Chin-jung (林琴容), director of Chiayi County’s civil affairs department, at the Dalin Township Office.
Brushing aside the opposition of the Ministry of the Interior and the dissatisfaction of some residents with the Chiayi county government’s approval of the move, Lin said he believed that Huang, who had worked as an aide to a county councilor, was capable of leading the township.
The Ministry of the Interior issued a statement last week expressing its disagreement with the local government’s decision, contending that the solution was unacceptable to the public because it would fuel widespread suspicion that Lee would still be running the township through her daughter.
Some residents accused the Chiayi County Government of playing tricks to gain an edge in the next township chief election.
Lee Shiou-mei (李秀美), the departing Dalin Township head, was stripped of her duties after being sentenced by the Taiwan High Court under the newly amended Election and Recall Law of Civil Servants (公職人員選舉罷免法) to three months in prison for buying votes by handing out free tea.
Lee has appealed the case to the Supreme Court and would be able to reassume the office if the Supreme Court revokes the High Court’s ruling. The county government therefore allowed her daughter to take over the post while waiting for the court’s ruling.
Chiayi County Commissioner Chen Ming-wen (陳明文) said the decision was made for the sake of continuity in the township administration, despite the fact that Huang is not taken the national examinations for public servant certification.
Chen said no laws banned the move.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) and Chunghwa Telecom yesterday confirmed that an international undersea cable near Keelung Harbor had been cut by a Chinese ship, the Shunxin-39, a freighter registered in Cameroon. Chunghwa Telecom said the cable had its own backup equipment, and the incident would not affect telecommunications within Taiwan. The CGA said it dispatched a ship under its first fleet after receiving word of the incident and located the Shunxin-39 7 nautical miles (13km) north of Yehliu (野柳) at about 4:40pm on Friday. The CGA demanded that the Shunxin-39 return to seas closer to Keelung Harbor for investigation over the
An apartment building in New Taipei City’s Sanchong District (三重) collapsed last night after a nearby construction project earlier in the day allegedly caused it to tilt. Shortly after work began at 9am on an ongoing excavation of a construction site on Liuzhang Street (六張街), two neighboring apartment buildings tilted and cracked, leading to exterior tiles peeling off, city officials said. The fire department then dispatched personnel to help evacuate 22 residents from nine households. After the incident, the city government first filled the building at No. 190, which appeared to be more badly affected, with water to stabilize the
EARTHQUAKE: Taipei and New Taipei City accused a construction company of ignoring the Circular MRT’s original design, causing sections to shift by up to 92cm The Taipei and New Taipei City governments yesterday said they would seek NT$1.93 billion (US$58.6 million) in compensation from the company responsible for building the Circular MRT Line, following damage sustained during an earthquake in April last year that had shuttered a section for months. BES Engineering Corp, a listed company under Core Pacific Group, was accused of ignoring the original design when constructing the MRT line, resulting in negative shear strength resistance and causing sections of the rail line between Jhonghe (中和) and Banciao (板橋) districts to shift by up to 92cm during the April 3 earthquake. The pot bearings on
DEEPER REVIEW: After receiving 19 hospital reports of suspected food poisoning, the Taipei Department of Health applied for an epidemiological investigation A buffet restaurant in Taipei’s Xinyi District (信義) is to be fined NT$3 million (US$91,233) after it remained opened despite an order to suspend operations following reports that 32 people had been treated for suspected food poisoning, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. The health department said it on Tuesday received reports from hospitals of people who had suspected food poisoning symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and diarrhea, after they ate at an INPARADISE (饗饗) branch in Breeze Xinyi on Sunday and Monday. As more than six people who ate at the restaurant sought medical treatment, the department ordered the
RSS