Taipei, Nov. 1 (CNA) Twelve Indonesian sailors have gone missing in the sea after the Panamanian-flagged freighter on which they worked developed a mechanical failure and sank off the coast of Changhua County on Monday night, the Maritime Port Bureau said on Tuesday.
The Control Yuan has censured the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ Maritime and Port Bureau, citing the bureau for dereliction of duty leading to more than 2,600 abnormal licensing incidents by the Central Maritime Affairs Center.
According to a report by Control Yuan members Lin Kuo-ming (林國明), Wang Li-chen (王麗珍) and Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津) released on Tuesday, the center’s maritime transport technical personnel management system provided users unrestricted access and lacked management, overriding paper approval and allowing individuals to conduct illegal activities.
The system lacks a mutual check and cross-analysis mechanism, which has allowed center personnel to abuse their positions and create
Minister pledges review amid licensing scandal
‘NO OVERSIGHT’: Sung Li-heng had for more than 10 years allegedly received up to NT$8,000 for each yachting license he produced for people who did not pass the test
By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday promised a comprehensive review of the yachting license distribution system after an associate technician at the Maritime and Port Bureau was indicted last week for allegedly exploiting loopholes in the system and accepting bribes from people wanting to purchase licenses for more than 10 years.
Lin made the remarks at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, where he had been asked to brief lawmakers on the case and the ministry’s plan to address the potentially systematic problem.