TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The National Communications Commission (NCC) on Wednesday (Oct. 5) turned down a request to remove cable news station TVBS from channel 55.

Eight cable system operators applied last month to allow a rival new station, Mirror TV, to take over the channel, but NCC Chairman Chen Yaw-shyang (陳耀祥) said Wednesday that during a meeting earlier in the day, the NCC had decided to reject the application. TVBS would have been forced to move to channels 149 and 158, away from the current block from channels 49 to 55, where most news stations can be found.

The issue has also become the focus of a political conflict, since TVBS is generally considered as leaning toward the opposition. Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers accused the government of taking sides and of trying to stifle TVBS, accusations which President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) denied.

The New Power Party (NPP) released a recording of Mirror TV Chairman Pei Wei (裴偉) allegedly boasting that the government had intervened with the NCC on his station’s behalf, provoking demands from the opposition for the media body to revoke Mirror TV’s license and remove Pei from his position.

Commenting on the decision to leave TVBS News broadcasting on channel 55, Chen said the NCC based its rulings on consumers’ rights, free market competition, and content diversity, CNA reported. Mirror TV had also failed to come up with viewer data which could lead to a takeover of the channel, officials said.