In an ongoing dispute over a profitable shopping mall, Minister of the Interior Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) accused the Keelung City Government of selling the “golden goose” and violently evicting the original operator.
The Keelung E-Square Mall (基隆東岸商場) has been a profitable for many years, with commercial rights held by Taiwanese firm NET Fashion Development Co, which also leases out space to retail stores, from which the city government had received an annual rights payment of NT$50.5 million (US$1.61 million), Lin said yesterday.
Lin of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was Keelung mayor from 2014 to 2022, while the current mayor, George Hsieh (謝國樑) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), emerged victorious in the mayoral election in 2022 to take charge of the Keelung City Government.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Lin said that Hsieh violently evicted NET Co from the mall, while handing over the “golden goose” through a secret deal under an opaque process to the new operator, the Breeze Group.
Separately yesterday, Hsieh at a press conference urged Lin to come forward and provide a clear explanation to the public of the decisionmaking process regarding the property during his [Lin’s] mayorship.
Questioning Lin on why the property right was not registered during his term, Hsieh said the city government now has the an obligation to protect its property.
NET, for its part, has filed a lawsuit, citing illegal action by Hsieh and the city government, in carrying out a “nighttime raid” for unannounced eviction in the early hours of Feb. 1, in which city officials, accompanied by 40 police officers, hauled away its belongings and shut down the NET store at the mall, as well as changing the locks to prevent re-entry.
In the past few days, NET has placed an advert in newspapers demanding that Hsieh as city mayor apologize for the “bandit action” on Feb. 1, which its lawyers claim was illegal, abuse of government authority, larceny and causing damage to private property, resulting in the loss of more than NT$10 million for the company.
NET said it obtained the right for the commercial operation of the complex in 2016, in cooperation with Lucky Parking Co (大日開發), which previously operated the complex as a parking lot, and invested NT$300 million to convert and renovate the second to fourth floors at E-Square Mall.
“We did not know at the time, that the previous operator had not signed the property right agreement for the mall’s second to fourth floor space, which led to later issues and disputes,” NET said, adding that it still holds the legal rights to the property and rights to commercial operation.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,900) for advertisements that exceeded its approved business scope and ordered the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license would be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter supervision of Chinese e-commerce platforms and more stringent measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan as US President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on origin laundering. The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday met to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report on the matter. Democratic Progressive Party
Taiwan and its Pacific ally Tuvalu on Tuesday signed two accords aimed at facilitating bilateral cooperation on labor affairs, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). The governments inked two agreements in Taipei, witnessed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and visiting Deputy Tuvaluan Prime Minister Panapasi Nelesone, MOFA said in a news release. According to MOFA, the agreements will facilitate cooperation on labor issues and allow the two sides to mutually recognize seafarers’ certificates and related training. Taiwan would also continue to collaborate with Tuvalu across various fields to promote economic prosperity as well as the well-being of their
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
RSS