The Control Yuan yesterday voted 6-4 to impeach former Council of Agriculture (COA) chairman Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) for illegally constructing a luxury farmhouse on agricultural land without engaging in any agriculture.
“Su used his administrative privileges during his terms as Pingtung County commissioner, minister of the interior and COA chairman to build a farmhouse on an agricultural land as a mansion for his own use. None of the equipment or the remaining land were found to be used for agriculture, which constitutes a violation of the Agricultural Development Act (農業發展條例),” the Control Yuan told a press conference following a meeting to discuss the case.
Su, the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) candidate for vice president in the January presidential election, was embroiled in controversy in the run-up to the election for building the farmhouse on agricultural land in Pingtung County for residential use.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
To end months of controversy, Su donated his farmhouse and the farmland to the county’s Changchih (長治) Township Office in October last year and moved his family away from the property.
According to the impeachment statement, in addition to the agricultural land, other farming and grazing land registered under Su’s name was used for Su’s ancestral graves, while the farmhouse itself occupied some township-owned land “with an alleged intention of long-term occupation of state property” and was therefore deemed to violate the Non-urban Land Use Control Regulations (非都市土地使用管制規則).
“As a long-time public servant, Su should have abided by the regulations and set a good example, but instead, he was involved in two cases of illegal land use, used his privileges for personal gain and deliberately broke the laws,” the statement said.
“In light of Su’s aforementioned wrongdoings and his later refusal to undergo Control Yuan questioning, which constituted a breach of the Civil Servants Work Act (公務員服務法), the Control Yuan voted in favor of impeachment and referred Su to the Judicial Yuan’s Commission on the Disciplinary Sanctions of Functionaries for deliberation,” it said.
DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said the decision showed the “decadence” of the Control Yuan and “exactly why” it had lost people’s trust and confidence.
Su’s case and the Yu Chang Biologics Co (宇昌生技股份有限公司) case involving former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) were both “obvious mud-slinging campaign tactics and political maneuvers” during the presidential campaign, he said.
“While the courts ruled that Su and Tsai were innocent, the Control Yuan still won’t let go and appears determined to pursue the cases to the very end,” Lin said.
“The DPP cannot accept the decision, plain and simple,” Lin said.
At a press conference at Tsai’s foundation, where he now serves as a board member, Su said the decision was a political maneuver “even after the presidential election.”
“Is it necessary for the Control Yuan to come up with the politically motivated impeachment more than six months after the presidential election?” Su asked.
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
MISSION: The Indo-Pacific region is ‘the priority theater,’ where the task of deterrence extends across the entire region, including Taiwan, the US Pacific Fleet commander said The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday. The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region. “The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech. “That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he