The Ministry of Justice said it would launch an investigation into the alleged use of Chinese money for influence peddling as campaigns heat up ahead of the Nov. 29 nine-in-one elections.
In a report sent to the Legislative Yuan, the ministry said it would crack down on political parties and other organizations suspected of accepting political donations from Chinese citizens.
Political parties or organizations found to be breaking election laws would be fined, it added.
To prevent vote-buying and other irregularities, the ministry said in the report that in addition to keeping a close eye on foreign money aimed at buying domestic votes, it is taking two extra steps to monitor local money flows in the coming weeks.
First, it is setting up a one-stop center to gather and share financial information among farmers’ associations, fishermen’s associations and financial institutions.
Local farmers’ and fishermen’s associations, along with irrigation associations, have been considered hotbeds for vote-buying, due to their influence in communities, officials said.
Second, the ministry aims to speed up analysis of flows of large amounts of money during the final stage of campaigns — from Nov. 14 to polling day on Nov. 29 — to detect possible vote-buying activities.
It also reminded candidates in the upcoming municipal, city and county government and council elections to file reports to the Control Yuan in accordance with the political donations law.
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