Vice Finance Minister Sean Chen (陳沖) said yesterday that bank capital flows would be coming under close scrutiny as part of the government's efforts to eliminate further vote-buying in Saturday's legislative polls.
Chen issued a warning against any financial institutions emerging as the source of money laundering or illegal capital operations, following reports that corrupt electoral practices were already marring the electoral process.
"The finance ministry will cooperate with law-enforcement units in their efforts to curb illegal vote-buying," he said.
The remarks came after a local Chinese-language paper reported that at least 100 officials from financial supervisory agencies have been assigned to check the capital flows of grass-roots banking institutions for any signs of vote-buying.
An unnamed finance ministry official said that officials will notify prosecutors of any extraordinary changes in the institutions' deposits or loans.
"The purpose of the move is to help law-enforcement units crack down on vote-buying," the financial ministry official said.
"The financial check will last until the vote on Saturday," he added.
Incidents of vote-buying have been rife during the last week, particularly in the final days before the vote, the paper said.
The paper said the monitoring efforts could influence the poll results since many of the financial institutions under scrutiny used to be cells of the former KMT government.
A prosecutor from the southern Kaohsiung district court on Tuesday indicted independent candidate Wang Tien-ching (王天競) and KMT candidate Hsiao Chin-lan (蕭金蘭) on charges of vote-buying.
The prosecutor sought a jail term of three-and-half years for Wang and 10 months for Hsiao.
Last week DPP lawmaker Hsu Chih-ming (徐志明), who was seeking re-election, was also indicted on vote-buying allegations.
The ruling DPP has pledged to oversee a clean race in the first legislative elections since it took the helm of the country last year, ending the KMT's half-century grip on power.
Election analysts said none of the nation's political parties are expected to capture a majority in the legislature.
A record 476 candidates are vying for 168 of 225 seats, while 41 seats will be allocated to nominees from different political parties based on their share of the vote.
The remaining 16 seats are for representatives of minority tribes and overseas Taiwanese.
Some local elections will also be held in conjunction with the polls, with five cities electing mayors and 18 counties choosing magistrates.
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
RSS