Supreme Court Chief Justice Wu Tsan (吳燦) yesterday became the first senior judicial official to issue a public apology over a scandal that allegedly involves nearly 40 judicial workers and prosecutors who allegedly had inappropriate ties with Chia Her Industrial Co president Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾).
During an interview, Wu said: “I wish to apologize, on behalf of the Supreme Court, to other members of the judiciary and the public, because we have not done our task well.”
In 2012, Weng was sentenced to eight years in prison for breaching the Securities and Exchange Act (證券交易法). The sentence was later reduced to four months.
Photo: CNA
Last year, the Control Yuan passed a motion to impeach former Commission on the Disciplinary Sanctions of Functionaries secretary-general Shih Mu-chin (石木欽), a friend of Weng, for allegedly breaching the Judges Act (法官法).
Shih, who until 2017 served a Supreme Court judge, did not to recuse himself from cases involving Weng and allegedly provided Weng with legal advice, investigators of the Judicial Yuan and the Ministry of Justice said.
Investigators in January said they had found that up to 40 judicial works have had “inappropriate dealings” with Weng.
Of the 20 judges involved, Lin Chi-fu (林奇福), Yen Nan-chuan (顏南全) and Wu Hsiung-ming (吳雄銘) have admitted that they have handled cases involving Weng.
Wu Tsan cited former Judicial Yuan vice president Su Yung-chin (蘇永欽) as saying that “even if one is dissatisfied with the Supreme Court, they should still retain basic respect for the court of final appeal.”
However, the Weng scandal has undermined public trust in the judiciary, Wu Tsan said.
Media reports on the case have irrevocably tarnished the court’s reputation, and in extension that of the entire judiciary, he said.
Members of the judiciary would not have to cut all personal ties, but they must be careful to keep them separated from their professional dealings, Wu Tsan said.
However, he hopes that the issue would soon subside and the court return to its daily business as court of final appeal, Wu Tsan said.
The Supreme Court has to work to gain respect by the public and the lower courts, he said.
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56
FATALITIES: The storm claimed at least two lives — a female passenger in a truck that was struck by a falling tree and a man who was hit by a utility pole Workers cleared fallen trees and shop owners swept up debris yesterday after one of the biggest typhoons to hit the nation in decades claimed at least two lives. Typhoon Kong-rey was packing winds of 184kph when it slammed into eastern Taiwan on Thursday, uprooting trees, triggering floods and landslides, and knocking out power as it swept across the nation. A 56-year-old female foreign national died from her injuries after the small truck she was in was struck by a falling tree on Provincial Highway 14A early on Thursday. The second death was reported at 8pm in Taipei on Thursday after a 48-year-old man