Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) yesterday apologized after a lawmaker accused his ministry of having “loose screws” amid reports that a soldier went missing, possibly at sea, two days after other reports of lost weapons and components came to light.
Hours after Chiu’s remark, Army Command Headquarters issued a statement saying it has not been able to verify rumors that a soldier surnamed Chen (陳) swam into the sea to desert the army or that he has been retrieved alive by the Chinese Coast Guard.
Coast Guard Administration officials have contacted their counterparts in China to request cooperation, the army headquarters said.
Photo: CNA
Chen was reported missing from a Kinmen County garrison at morning roll call on Thursday, two days after the military reported that a handgun and other components had vanished from its armories.
“I deeply apologize that this incident has occurred to a serviceman serving on an outlying island,” Chiu said on the sidelines of a legislative session in Taipei.
The Ministry of National Defense has asked the navy to assist in the search for the missing man and is waiting for the service to respond, Chiu said.
The ministry cannot address rumors that Chen had financial problems or that he was a deserter, he added.
Chen is a staff member in a kitchen at the Lieyu Garrison Battalion on Erdan Islet (二膽), an atoll off Kimen Couny’s Lieyu Island (烈嶼), Kimen Defense Command Chief of Staff Major General Lee Chi-huan (李其桓) said.
The soldier was not present at the 9am morning roll call and the unit launched a search of the islet, but to no avail, Lee said.
Chen was described by other soldiers as a terrible swimmer, and his father said that he could barely swim 20m, Lee said.
Chen’s behavior was described as normal in the days before his disappearance, he added.
Regarding reports of a missing handgun and weapons components, Chiu said that these incidents are not recent and have been under investigation for some time.
A .45 caliber sidearm was found to have been substituted by an imitation gun in the inventory of the Navy Education, Training and Doctrine Development Command, the command reported on Wednesday.
The discovery was made during an inspection related to mobilization readiness testing, it said.
The Marine Corps Command also on Wednesday said that the 99th Marine Brigade discovered bolts missing from two T-91 rifles during a routine inspection.
The loss of weapon components was reported to civilian law enforcement, and the command is opening a separate probe into the incident, it said, adding that further inspections and remedial training have been ordered.
“Scandals involving personal relationships and drug use in the armed forces in recent years show that the defense ministry has loose screws,” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said yesterday.
“The ministry should tighten military discipline to stop problems like these happening again,” he added.
The theft of a military firearm is “absolutely unacceptable,” DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said.
The missing items and the people responsible must be found and dealt with before the items find their way into the hands of criminals, he said.
Additional reporting by Wu Cheng-ting and Wu Su-wei
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