Chinese tycoon Chen Guangbiao (陳光標), who led a high-profile charity visit to Taiwan earlier this year, responded to allegations in the Chinese-language media that his donations were fake by saying that he could prove his innocence with all the receipts and paperwork from past donations.
Chen’s visit prior to the Lunar New Year holiday, during which he handed out hundreds of millions of NT dollars to some of the nation’s poorest families, sparked controversy in Taiwan, with some legislators saying his approach was demeaning of Taiwanese.
A report in the China Business Journal quoted inside sources as saying that Chen’s acts of philanthropy were only “lip service” and intended to garner positive publicity and greater profits.
The source said Chen obtained contracts with local Taiwanese governments through the contacts he made during his visit, giving him an unfair advantage over competitors.
In a telephone interview with the Central News Agency, Chen said some media were purposefully running distorted reports and being manipulated by corporations working behind the scenes.
“It could be that my public acts of altruism have stung the pretentious souls of other rich people,” Chen said, adding that 98 percent of his donations had already reached their intended recipients.
Asked what had happened to the remaining 2 percent, Chen said it was because of the contract he signed with the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum for upkeep, which clearly stated that the funds “would be made available in installments.”
Chen said the Chinese-language media were using the 2 percent to accuse him of falsifying all his donations.
Chen said a TV interview to be aired last night would show all the receipts and paperwork related to his donations, adding that he did not mind the criticism as it had brought the subject of Chinese philanthropic agencies into the limelight.
However, he said he was worried that the negative reports could cause some of the tens of millions of willing donors to second-guess their altruistic feelings.
Asked whether he would visit Taiwan next month, Chen said he had been very busy recently and that while the trip was still scheduled, whether it would go ahead remained uncertain.
“It doesn’t matter if I come [to Taiwan] or not,” Chen said, adding that the money would “definitely” be coming.
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