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Army fear of irregularities delays acquisition of land

Defense officials are troubled by a NT$2 billion subsidy granted to the army by the Executive Yuan to purchase land in Hsinchu County to relocate a boot camp, because the amount is more than is required for the purchase.

Defense sources said that the army has been unable to decide on which block of land to buy, fearing that the value of whatever land it chose would never reach NT$2 billion. The army was concerned it could then be accused of acting in favor of unnamed interests.

The land purchase is the biggest project the army has undertaken in recent years, and not just because of the amount of money involved. It aims to find a permanent site for the army's largest boot camp in northern Taiwan, which has been uprooted from its former base and is still waiting to be relocated.

A defense official said the Executive Yuan had probably given too much money to the army because the purchase of the land required in Hsinchu would not cost as much as that provided.

"What we and the army do not know is why the [Executive] Yuan has given so much money. It is not clear to us that irregularities are not involved," the official said.

A senior army official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that so far no irregularities had come to their attention.

"It is too early to discuss the matter. We still have to spend some time working out the best solution," the official said.

"It is my understanding that the [Executive] Yuan offered us more than NT$2 billion for the relocation project. We mightn't need that much money to purchase the land, but we could use [the remainder] for related expenses," he said.

The army official declined to comment on speculation that the money would not be used entirely for the purchase of land, and that part of it would instead be directed to the local government.

A mid-rank army official with access to information on the relocation project said the army's biggest fear was that it might end up taking some blame for spending such an amount of money.

"One of the sites under consideration is on the border of Hsinchu and Miaoli counties. It 's sort of in the middle of nowhere. Who would buy land in such a place? Only the military would. The value of the land is obvious," the official said.

The boot camp had been at its former Hsinchu site for several decades. It was removed to make way for expansion of the neighboring science-based industrial park.

The camp, called Kuantung Bridge (關東橋), holds memories for many conscripts who received their basic training there. That camp is now part of history, because even if it is successfully relocated, the new facility will not bear that name.
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