Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) office yesterday urged Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to publicize details of electoral donations his campaign has received.
Lee Ying-yuan (李應元), chief executive officer of Hsieh's campaign, told a press conference that Hsieh wanted the presidential campaign to be conducted in a transparent manner.
As a result, Hsieh has been cooperating with judicial probes in cases centering on his special allowance and political donations, Lee said.
PHOTO: CNA
"We hope both sides [Ma and Hsieh's campaigns] can face judicial procedures honestly and show the public that we are applying the same standard to ourselves as we apply to our opponent," Lee said.
"Therefore, we urge Ma's office to make public the sources of the donations he received during his terms as Taipei mayor and during his election campaigns and show how the money was spent," Lee said.
Lee made the remarks at the news conference after Hsieh had a meeting with Special Investigation Section Prosecutor Chou Chih-jung (周志榮) of the Supreme Court Prosecutors Office at Chou's office on Friday.
Donations
Hsieh allegedly accepted large political donations from a group of construction companies during his term as Kaohsiung mayor in 2002.
Kaohsiung Prosecutor Lo Chien-hsun (羅建勛) alleged last year the companies made donations to Hsieh during the bidding for Kaohsiung's MRT construction project.
After making the donations, the companies had all been accepted as MRT contractors, he said.
On Friday, Hsieh said that all the donors summoned by prosecutors as witnesses in the case had told prosecutors they had made the donations in order to support his election campaign and not to curry favor in the selection process for MRT contractors.
Lee urged the media, political talk shows and newspapers not to make "groundless defamatory comments" against Hsieh.
Hsieh's camp had assembled a group of lawyers to take immediate action to "safeguard Hsieh's basic human rights and reputation," Lee said.
In response to the request by Hsieh's camp, Ma yesterday urged Hsieh "not to drag others into his corruption scandals."
"Hsieh should face the charges with courage and explain himself to the prosecutors, rather than involving other people in his case," Ma said.
Shrugging off the remarks by Hsieh's office, Ma campaign spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (
Lo also urged the Hsieh campaign not to try to shift the focus away from the corruption issues that Hsieh faces.
"Hsieh should make his own accounts public before asking others to do so," Lo said.
Additional reporting by Mo Yan-chih
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES: Despite the threats from outside, Taiwan and Lithuania thrived and developed their economies, former president Tsai Ing-wen said Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday thanked Lithuania for its support of Taiwan, saying that both countries are united as partners in defending democracy. Speaking at a reception organized by the Lithuania-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group welcoming her on her first visit to the Baltic state, Tsai said that while she was president from 2016 to last year, many Lithuanian “friends” visited Taiwan. “And I told myself I have to be here. I am very happy that I am here, a wonderful country and wonderful people,” Tsai said. Taiwan and Lithuania are in similar situations as both are neighbors to authoritarian countries, she
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is to visit the UK during her ongoing European trip, which originally included only Lithuania and Denmark, her office said today. Tsai departed Taiwan for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark, marking her second visit to the continent since her two-term presidency ended in May last year. Her office issued a statement today saying that Tsai would also visit the UK "for a few days," during which she is to meet with UK politicians and Taiwanese professionals, and visit academic and research institutions. Following Tsai's stop in Denmark, she is to visit the
RSS