Print

Mail

wiki links

More to be indicted for vote-buying

At least another 10 indictments of vote-buying captains -- the people who put money into the hands of voters in exchange for their support -- are expected before election day, the minister of justice said yesterday.

"I believe investigators are ready to nail these people at anytime," Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) said yesterday.

The Ministry of Justice has vowed to make this year's election a clean one, aggressively going after vote-buyers and offering cash rewards for tipsters who turn in cheats.

As of yesterday, investigators have opened 1,025 vote-buying cases involving 1,139 suspects. Of that number, 12 people involved in three separate cases have been indicted.

Chen reiterated yesterday that vote-buying captains should realize that they won't be protected by the candidates they work for if they are caught.

"Again, just like I said [on Thursday], today's candidates are so smart that they will immediately deny any connection with these vote-buying captains," Chen said.

"It's totally not worth working for these candidates who are trying to buy votes."

Chen noted the case of a vote-buying captain caught attempting to solicit voters' support in Changhua County during last year's presidential election.

"When the investigators were trying to nail him, the party's contact person just told him to run without giving him any monetary assistance or help," Chen said.

Chen said that this year many candidates are using free meals, junkets or giveaways instead of cash to win support.

"Do not test us," Chen warned. "We will definitely snare the bad guys once we have collected enough evidence."

But while the justice minister was talking up his campaign against vote-buying, some found his prediction that 10 indictments may come soon to be troubling.

Chen Jui-jen (陳瑞仁), spokesman for Prosecutors' Reform Association, said it was inappropriate for government officials to make public comments that could interfere with the judicial process.

"Prosecutors investigate cases and bring indictments according to the evidence they gather, and they do not have to report the details of a case to the minister of justice," Chen said. "Government officials should be careful to watch what they say."

In related news, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) attended a Ministry of Justice event at Houpu Primary School in Panchiao yesterday to promote the anti-vote-buying campaign.

Chen told students that it was shameful to buy or sell votes and encouraged them to go home and tell their parents not to do so.

"Voters who sell votes to the candidates must think they are smart because they can earn some extra bucks," the president said.

"But these vote-buying candidates will definitely come up with a way to earn it back, such as accepting kickbacks," Chen said.

"Think about this. The voters will still be the losers if the public servants they chose are just trying to make more money instead of working for the public. ... No matter whether you are buying votes or selling votes, it's shameful."
This story has been viewed 1861 times.