The dormitory of former president Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) bodyguards is an illegal construction and built in a flood-prone area beside Taipei's Waishuang Creek (外雙溪), a Taipei City councilor said at a press conference yesterday.
The allegedly illegal dorm is located in a drainage area and the bodyguards are in danger from a possible sudden rise in water levels and the undermining of the foundation by flood waters, New Party Councilor Lee Ching-yuan (
Worse still, the "unlawful, shabby house," as the councilor described it, costs NT$300,000 in monthly rent, the same price as the former president's villa, located in Taipei City's Shihlin District, the councilor said.
Lee's villa was also branded an illegal structure by Lee Ching-yuan last month.
Responding to the latest allegation, officials from the Taipei City Government's Department of Building Administration (建管處) confirmed that the dormitory is indeed an old, illegal construction, but it will not face the fate of immediate demolition because there is no apparent imminent danger to the structure.
According to sources, the land on which the dormitory was built belongs to the National Property Bureau (國有財產局) and the home's owner, Lin Chin-piao (林金標), did not obtain a license for the privately built structure.
According to administrative regulations issued by the Taipei City government, part of the land adjacent to Waishuang Creek is defined as a drainage area and no structures are legally permitted.
The councilor suggested that the Presidential Office and the National Security Bureau (國安局) rent a legal, safe and firm house for the former president's bodyguards, instead of benefiting a handful of people in a waste of public funds that endangers the bodyguards' safety.
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