Campaign against corruption working, ministry proclaims

The Ministry of Justice yesterday revealed the latest statistics in it's fight against black gold, announcing that law-enforcement authorities have indicted 4,206 people and confiscated of NT$20,036,500,000 in bribe money since the crackdown began in July1998.

"Black gold" is the term used to describe a range of corrupt and illegal political activities that includes money laundering, bribes and vote-buying.

"Our crackdown on black gold does not target any specific person and does not have any deadline. The results say it all," said a senior official from the ministry's Department of Inspection who wished to remain anonymous.

"And it is not difficult to see that we will arrest and indict high-ranking government officials, no matter who they are, as long as evidence proves their offenses," the official said.

Among the 4,206 indicted, 233 of them were senior government officials; 353 were legislators, city councilors or county councilors; 874 were mid-ranking government officials; 1,338 were low-ranking government officials and 1,408 were civilians.

The official said that the cases involving former KMT lawmaker Wong Chung-chun's (翁重鈞) and former Taiwan Fertilizer Corporation chairman Hsieh Sheng-fu's (謝生富) got the most attention.

Both Wong and Hsieh were involved in the Zanadau Development Corp scandal and indicted on Feb. 14.

Hsieh indicted on the charge of corruption for allegedly using Taiwan Fertilizer's money to buy Zanadau stocks and receiving bribes from Su Hui-chen (蘇惠珍), who was then vice president of the company.

Wong also indicted on the charge of corruption for allegedly receiving NT$25 million as a bribe from Su and taking advantage of his position as a lawmaker to obtain a license for the construction of Zanadau's 11.66 hectare Tahu Commercial Zone in Kaohsiung County after the project had been ruled ineligible.