Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅) yesterday accused Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) vice presidential candidate Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) of breaking the law.
Showing photographs of two detached mansions in a vacant lot, Chiu accused Su of violating rules governing the use of farmland which stipulate that the percentage of a plot of agricultural land used for houses should not exceed 10 percent.
Chiu made the allegations during a question-and-answer session at the legislature.
According to Chiu, construction permits for the two mansions located in the Changchih Township (長治), Pingtung County, where Su Jia-chyuan’s family and that of his sister-in-law live, were awarded in 2003 when Su Jia-chyuan was county commissioner.
By using the farmland to build the mansions Su had violated the “Regulations Governing Agricultural Dwelling Houses” (農業用地興建農舍辦法), established to ensure that farmland is used for agricultural purposes, Chiu said.
Although the issuance of such permits was within the sphere of local governments’ statutory authority, it was a violation of conflict-of-interest rules that Pingtung County Government approved the projects, Chiu added.
Chiu asked Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and the Executive Yuan to look into possible negligence on the part of Pingtung County Commissioner Tsao Chi-hung (曹啟鴻), who Chiu claimed said in 2007 that the local government would raze the mansions, but had so far failed to do so.
Chiu also accused Su Chia-fu (蘇嘉富), Su Jia-chyuan’s older brother, of involvement in the illegally mined sand and gravel businesses, citing a statement made by the older Su in a case he brought against Chiu in 2008, a case in which prosecutors decided not to indict Chiu.
In the statement Su Chia-fu told prosecutors that he sometimes played the role of intermediary between buyers and the sand and gravel mining industry and that police turned a blind eye to truck drivers suspected of transporting illegally mined sand and gravel when they learned that they were working with Su Chia-fu when Su Jia-chyuan was commissioner, Chiu said.
Chiu also alleged that Su Jia-chyuan’s wife, Hung Heng-chu (洪恆珠), a public servant, accompanied him on electioneering on Tuesday during working hours.
In response, DPP campaign office spokesperson Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) said the allegations were all untrue.
“The integrity of Su Jia-chyuan has been tried and tested in many elections. The DPP will not dance to Chiu’s tune,” Hsu said, adding that Su Jia-chyuan had obtained legitimate permits to build his house and Hung had taken a day off on Tuesday.
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard
GLOBAL: The slogan would be advertised in popular tourist destinations in North America and Europe, such as Champs-Elysees and Times Square, the agency said “Taiwan: Waves of Wonder” is to be the country’s new tourism slogan for the next 10 years, the Tourism Administration said yesterday, adding that it would be showcased in commercials at the Olympic Games in Paris and other major cities and travel fairs around the world. The new slogan, logo and theme song, which were unveiled at a news conference in Taipei, marked the agency’s latest effort to attract 10 million international visitors to Taiwan this year, a goal that it readjusted earlier this year, as China has yet to lift its travel ban to Taiwan. The administration created the “Taiwan: Touch
BOOST TO SPORTS? The Executive Yuan said that the amendment was introduced to attract professionals to Taiwan, and increase the incentives for naturalization The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed on third reading an amendment to the Nationality Act (國籍法) that would reduce the minimum residency period required for highly skilled professionals to apply for naturalization from three to two continuous years, with a minimum of 183 days in Taiwan each year. The 183-day requirement does not apply if an eligible applicant has lived legally in the territory of the Republic of China for more than five continuous years. Taiwan’s professional basketball leagues are expected to benefit from the amendments, which would allow them to recruit more players from overseas. Prior to the passage of the amendment, the