Prosecutors yesterday questioned the seven main suspects in an investigation into alleged irregularities in government procurements concerning tender cases handled by former Legislative Yuan secretary-general Lin Hsi-shan (林錫山) and his office.
The suspects summoned for questioning were those who were released on bail on Jan. 20 following the initial round of the investigation, including Lin’s wife, Liu Hsin-wei (劉馨蔚), and a former section chief at the Legislative Yuan’s Information Technology Office, Chen Lu-sheng (陳露生).
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said it has made progress in the probe.
Prosecutors said Lin is suspected of having received more than NT$10 million (US$298,463) in kickbacks from Far Net Technologies Co, which won 32 computer and information technology (IT)-related contracts at the Legislative Yuan amounting to NT$200 million over the past five years.
It has been reported that Far Net Technologies sales manager Lin Ming-yu (林明玉) has turned state witness and is to testify against the other main suspects in the case, and that she was released on NT$300,000 bail on Feb. 5.
According to investigators, Lin Hsi-shan instructed his aide, Chen Liang-yin (陳亮吟), a section chief at the legislature’s Secretary-General’s Office, to leak the details of the office’s IT requirements to Far Net Technologies in order to rig tender bids, and then received kickbacks.
If Far Net Technologies did not manage to win an open tender, it was alleged that Lin Hsi-shan would instruct Chen to nullify the tender on technicalities.
Records indicate that Far Net Technologies secured 33 IT-related tender projects at the legislature from 2011 to the end of last year and in most of these instances, it was the only company that was deemed qualified to bid.
Prosecutors said the main suspects would be charged with violating the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) and the Government Procurement Act (政府採購法), as well as with accepting bribes, receiving improper benefits in contravention of their official duties and leaking secrets.
Some pundits have said that the corruption probe, which was initiated shortly after the Jan. 16 presidential and legislative elections, was intended as a continuation of a political feud between President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and former legislative speaker Wang Jin-Pyng (王金平), since Lin Hsi-shan was a long-time associate of Wang.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
RSS