President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday presented former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) with the Order of the Brilliant Star medal.
On accepting the award at the Presidential Office, Lo thanked the president for giving him the opportunity to join his team and participate in public affairs, but declined to say whether he will work for Ma in the future.
Lo resigned from his post in September in the wake of allegations of improper lobbying made against Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) and said he will not run in the Keelung mayoral election.
Following his resignation, Lo continued his criticism of Wang’s alleged improper lobbying on Facebook, while using his page to defend Ma’s policies.
The Presidential Office yesterday dismissed concerns that the medal was to reward Lo for criticizing Wang, and said such medals have been given to almost every top official at the Presidential Office.
Lo was presented with the honor for his achievements in enhancing the office’s communication with the media and explaining government policies, as well as planning the president’s diplomatic visits, the Presidential Office said.
Ma did not comment on Lo’s medal, but the Presidential Office and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) have softened their stances on the issue of Wang’s party membership. As the KMT chairman, Ma agreed on Wednesday that the dispute over Wang’s membership should be handled within the party.
Presidential Office spokesperson Lee Chia-fei (李佳霏) yesterday dismissed allegations that Representative to the US King Pu-tsung (金溥聰), Ma’s top aide, will soon take over as secretary-general to try to turn around domestic affairs amid Ma’s record-low approval rate.
She said the Presidential Office does not know where such allegations came from.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about