ARIRANG NEWS 10:00
Hello and welcome... it′s 10am on Tuesday the seventh of October... you are tuned in to our mid-morning newscast here on Arirang TV.
It′s great that you coudl join us,... I′m Mark Broome.
Let′s take a look at what′s making the headlines.
The National Assembly′s inspection of government agencies kicks off today. Lawmakers are expected to focus on the government′s response to the Sewol-ho ferry sinking and plans to raise taxes on cigarettes.
Samsung Electronics says its operating profit likely fell almost SIXTY percent in the third quarter to three-point-eight billion U.S. dollars.
Plus,.... a nurse in Spain becomes the first person to contract Ebola outside of West Africa in the latest epidemic.
Title: Parliamentary inspection of government agencies kicks off Tuesday
Our top story this morning....
The National Assembly begins its annual parliamentary hearings on this Tuesday.
Over the next three weeks or so, standing committees will call in officials from close to seven-hundred government offices to question them on their spending and the implementation of policies.
The ruling party wants to veer away from political bickering, but that looks to be wishful thinking as the main opposition has vowed to make the highly contentious Sewol-ho ferry disaster their top priority during the inspections.
Lawmakers will also question officials over plans to raise taxes on cigarettes.
Last month, the government proposed a tax hike that would nearly double cigarette prices.
Some lawmakers believe the proposed tax hike is a way to empty the pockets of working-class people and smokers.
Title: Sewol-ho ferry disaster blamed on illegal redesign, overloading of ship
Korea′s Supreme Prosecutors′ Office has announced some findings from its own probe into April′s Sewol-ho ferry sinking which killed more than 300 people, including a great many high school students.
Ji Myung-kil has more on the web of corruption and incompetence revealed by the investigation.
After a months-long investigation into April′s Sewol-ho ferry disaster,... the prosecution said 154 people,... including the captain, crew, government, and shipping officials,... have so far been indicted on various charges related to the accident.
The state′s prosecutor has concluded the main causes of the accident were illegal modifications and overloading of the vessel, while the Korea Coast Guard′s poor initial response led to a higher death toll.
"Patrol boat 123 was instructed to guide Sewol-ho ferry passengers to safely abandon the ship... but failed to even follow through with their basic duties."
Obstruction charges followed, as members of the Coast Guard were found to have tampered with a log book to make it look as though they had instructed passengers to abandon ship and that its rescuers entered the sinking ferry, when in fact, they had not.
Inefficient communication between the ferry′s crew and Jindo island′s Vessel Traffic Service Center also
