PTS Pres. & VP Forced to Resign after Board’s Approval of Pilot Plan for Int’l Channel

 PTS Pres. & VP Forced to Resign after Board’s Approval of Pilot Plan for Int’l Channel

Source: UDN

July 28, 2020

The Culture Ministry has commissioned Public Television Service (PTS) to map out a pilot plan for the “2020 Program to Develop International Digital Communication,” with a budget amounting to NT$45 million. In addition, the Cabinet plans to earmark a budget amounting to NT$1 billion per year to the four-year-long program to establish an online English video platform, starting next year. However, PTS had not reported the matter to its board of directors, eliciting dissatisfaction from some board members, who questioned whether politics had intervened in PTS.  

Yesterday, an extraordinary PTS board meeting was convened to resolve whether to conclude a contract to implement the pilot plan. After over-three-hour-long deliberations, the board of directors approved of conducting the plan by a vote of 11-4.  

In addition, as the board members regarded PTS’ failure to report beforehand the pilot plan to the board of directors as a big flaw, Tsao Wen-chieh (曹文傑), PTS president, and Hsieh Tsui-yu (謝翠玉), PTS executive vice president, who guided the pilot plan, stated in the beginning of the board meeting that if their resignations could win the approval of the case in question, they would be willing to do so in order to shoulder responsibility.   

Following the approval of the case, Tsao and Hsieh resigned under the pressure of board members.

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