DPP ad shines light on Lien's dubious fortune

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday launched its latest TV advertisement criticizing Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan's (連戰) abuse of privilege to become one of the richest men in Taiwan.

The ad depicts how Lien and his father Lien Chen-tung (連震東) started acquiring large tracts of land when Lien's family first moved to Taiwan 50 years ago

The advertisement revealed that the Liens had accumulated their vast wealth -- rumored to be around NT$20 billion -- by purchasing land as farmers before changing the land's catorgarization from farming use to residential and commercial use.

"Lien's father, Lien and Lien's children have all purchased land as farmers and then used the land for commercial purposes," DPP campaign headquarters spokesperson Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁) said yesterday. "Lien even bought farm land when he was a student in the US."

The ad also indicated that the land properties -- all of which are now expensive commercial land -- are so huge that five stadiums the size of the Tien-mu Baseball Stadium in Taipei could fit inside them.

The ad ended by asking how Lien and his father could be capable of acquiring such huge assets were it not for their exercise of privileges.

Wu yesterday said the documentary-style ad is an authentic presentation of Lien Chan's incredible personal wealth.

"It is not something we made up -- every picture and document presented were all facts," Wu said.

The ad was a response to a KMT commercial, also released yesterday, describing a father's inability to purchase luxury goods for his children with the line "Do you like it? But Dad can't afford it." The DPP's ad struck back with the line "Do you like it? Then Dad will steal it for you."