New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Kawlo Iyun Pacidal yesterday denied being involved in a conflict of interest case linked to her former legislative assistants, saying she would launch an investigation to defend her party membership.
Throughout her career at the Legislative Yuan, she has always worked hard to improve the rights of Aborigines and has never breached the law, Kawlo, an Amis, told a news conference
“I will not accept the spiteful accusations that I engaged in influence peddling or exerted pressure on the government’s reviews of green energy subsidy applications,” she said.
Photo: CNA
“Of all the subsidies I have earned for Aborigines, not a penny has gone into my own pocket,” she said.
The Green Party Taiwan on Monday last week said that two nongovernmental organizations run by a former assistant of Kawlo had received NT$4 million (US$127,539) in subsidies from the Ministry of Economic Affairs to establish clean-energy facilities.
As Kawlo is a member of the Legislative Yuan’s Economics Committee, which is responsible for supervising the ministry, the Green Party expressed concerns that the assistants could have breached conflict of interest laws and asked whether Kawlo had abused her power to obtain the subsidies.
Following the allegations, the NPP’s disciplinary committee on Wednesday last week suspended Kawlo and recommended that her membership be revoked for tarnishing the party’s image.
She had requested that the disciplinary committee members recuse themselves from the meeting and refused to answer questions, because they appeared to be biased against her, Kawlo said.
The committee had announced that it would recommend revoking her membership before thoroughly investigating the case or giving her sufficient time to prepare her defense, she said.
“Some of the things involved in the case happened a while back, so I need some time to clarify them,” she said.
Kawlo said she has dismissed her legislative office staff and would form a team to investigate the case.
She would provide related information to police if she finds anything illicit, Kawlo said, adding that if nothing is found, it would also be a chance to prove her former assistants’ innocence.
“I will try to complete the investigation by Aug. 25 and hope to have a chance to offer my explanation about the case during the NPP national convention that day,” she said.
According to the NPP’s charter, the disciplinary committee’s decision must be confirmed at the national convention, she said.
“I will humbly review myself and admit any mistakes on my part,” Kawlo said, adding that she hopes to continue working for Aboriginal rights if proven innocent.
Kawlo has no legal responsibility regarding the alleged conflict of interest involving her former assistants, her lawyer Lin Hsien-tung (林憲同) said.
“If she had any responsibility, it would be that she was supposed to supervise them, but based on the principle of proportionality, that should not lead to anything more than a warning,” he said.
If the national convention decides to revoke her membership, he would strongly recommend filing an administrative lawsuit, he added.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
RSS