President to keep clear of Liu case

The Presidential Office has no intention of intervening in the Zanadau Development Corp (新瑞都) corruption case, although it has been asked to do so, Secretary-General to the Presidential Office Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) said yesterday.

Chen admitted that the president had been approached by "someone" who tried to persuade him to stop law-enforcement officials investigating Liu Tai-ying (劉泰英), chairman of the China Development Holding Corp (中華開發) and former chief of the KMT's Investment and Business Management Committee, but he said the president had refused to weigh in.

Chen declined to disclose who made the request to the president.

"President Chen [Shui-bian (陳水扁)] has full respect for law-enforcement agencies and will not interfere with judicial procedures," Chen Shih-meng said.

Liu was detained by prosecutors Wednesday for questioning concerning allegations of corruption involving Zanadau, but was released without charges on a court order after 27 hours' detention.

Liu has been accused by former Zanadau vice president Su Hui-chen (蘇惠珍), now the company's majority shareholder, of accepting a kickback from her of NT$1.06 billion.

Su claims she paid this sum in return for Liu's promise to help her secure financing from banks, a promise which she said Liu did not honor.

Taipei District Prosecutors are also looking into other allegations against Liu of making improperly authorized and subsequently loss-making KMT investments.

Liu was widely seen as the KMT's principal money man during the later period of former president Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) chairmanship of the party and was believed to be entrusted with a number of under-the-table tasks on Lee's behalf.

Chen Shih-meng's remarks yesterday were pounced on by local media and political analysts who saw in them an attempt by President Chen to distance himself from his predecessor.

Chen Shih-meng, however, denied that there was any political motivation in the president's actions, saying that the president was not aware of all the details in the case and had no intention of stepping in.

When asked if Lee was one of the people who had asked President Chen to stop the investigation, Chen Shih-meng refused to make any further comments, saying: "It is inappropriate for me to answer this question ... I have no idea how much Lee knows about the event, so I can't answer the question."

He said, however, that he did not think the investigation would damage the relationship between Lee and the president.

"The relationship between the president and Lee is based on their ideals, not personal preferences ? I don't think that will affect their relationship."

Chen Shih-meng, who once wrote a book criticizing the KMT for mixing the state economy with party businesses, calling such a practice "party capitalism," said he was not surprised to hear of the Zanadau scandal.

He said the president, who was once a lawyer, would respect the independence and impartiality of the judiciary.

Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) also told opposition lawmakers yesterday that neither the DPP nor the government has tried to interfere in the Zanadau investigation.

"The investigation into Liu will go wherever the evidence leads," the minister said when attending a committee meeting at the Legislative Yuan, "and the prosecutors have a free hand in the investigation, in which I will not interfere, nor will I disclose their work.

"If there has some pressure on the investigation, I would say that it comes from the legislature," the justice minister said, urging lawmakers not to try influence the judiciary.

Speculation could only hinder the judiciary in discovering the truth and confuse the public's understanding of the case, he said.