A small group of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) delegates yesterday showed boxes of gifts they claimed to have received during the recent Central Standing Committee (CSC) election to protest the party's decision to punish only elected members in its bribery probe
The delegates from Yilan County brought the gifts, ranging from bottles of red wine to boxes of tea, orchids and soy sauce, to KMT headquarters in Taipei. They were led by the head of Jiaosi Township (礁溪), Lin Cheng-sheng (林政盛), who said each delegate received at least 50 gifts from almost every committee candidate.
“Everyone was sending gifts, but only Yang Chi-hsiung (楊吉雄) from Yilan was punished for bribery. We have come here today to protest the KMT's poor handling of the investigation,” Lin said in front of KMT headquarters.
The KMT's Evaluation and Disciplinary Committee on Tuesday revoked the elected status of Yang and Chiang Da-lung (江達隆) for bribing party delegates.
Yang was found to have sent fish worth NT$120 via a home delivery service, while Chiang sent red wine to delegates.
Both Yang and Chiang denied bribing delegates, but neither showed up at party headquarters yesterday. The protesters also declined to reveal the names of other CSC members who gave gifts, and took the gifts with them when they left.
Juan Kang-meng (阮剛猛), director of the party's disciplinary committee, questioned the intention of the protesters for refusing to leave the gifts as evidence.
“We don't know whether those gifts were sent by CSC members, or whether those protesters were delegates. We are skeptical of the intention of those behind this show,” he said.
Juan said the disciplinary committee would continue to probe bribery allegations and accept reports from KMT members. Disciplinary action will be taken against those found to have bribed delegates, he said.
CSC member Chen Ding-yun (陳釘雲) said sending gifts to delegates during a CSC election was a “historical glitch,” and said vote distribution was a worse problem during CSC elections.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), in his capacity as KMT chairman, yesterday praised the disciplinary committee for investigating the bribery allegations and reiterated his pledge to transform the KMT into a clean and responsible party.
“The end of the 18th national convention is the beginning of party reform ... We must let members and the society know about our determination to push for reform,” Ma said while presiding over his first CSC meeting after assuming the chairmanship.
Ma promised to seek closer cooperation between the government and the party, making the KMT a “great party” and his administration a “powerful government.”
He also pledged to turn the KMT into a party of action and asked party legislators to pass the fiscal budget for next year, as well as the budget for post-Typhoon Morakot reconstruction work.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Progressive Party panned the KMT for only picking on minor cases of bribery, while turning a blind eye to those who allegedly gave out more expensive gifts.
“If the KMT is willing to penalize those who handed out salted fish as a bribe, what should they do with those who gave out luggage, wine and blankets?” DPP Spokesman Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) asked.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JENNY W. HSU
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
TPP RALLY: The clashes occurred near the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on Saturday at a rally to mark the anniversary of a raid on former TPP chairman Ko Wen-je People who clashed with police at a Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) rally in Taipei on Saturday would be referred to prosecutors for investigation, said the Ministry of the Interior, which oversees the National Police Agency. Taipei police had collected evidence of obstruction of public officials and coercion by “disorderly” demonstrators, as well as contraventions of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the ministry said in a statement on Sunday. It added that amid the “severe pushing and jostling” by some demonstrators, eight police officers were injured, including one who was sent to hospital after losing consciousness, allegedly due to heat stroke. The Taipei
RSS