Legislator Wu Ping-jui (吳秉叡) yesterday filed a judicial complaint against people who accused him online of meddling with government efforts to procure a foreign-made COVID-19 vaccine and allegedly earning US$300 million in kickbacks.
Wu of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) filed the complaint of aggravated defamation at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office after his office gathered evidence on 10 people whose posts mentioning Wu were widely circulated on social media.
The reposts reportedly sparked controversy among Internet users on leading online discussion sites, including Professional Technology Temple and Dcard.
Photo: Chien Lee-chung, Taipei Times
“The accusations arose from falsified, erroneous information formulated to interfere with efforts by health authorities to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and aimed at creating fear and panic in society,” Wu’s office said in a statement.
“Despite earlier clarifications, some Internet users continued to post the disinformation and false accusations, circulating them wider through social media, to achieve their malevolent intention,” it added.
“Those Internet users produced drawings and memes to scorn and disparage me and top health officials,” it said. “This complaint of defamation is being filed to protect my integrity and to halt such fake news and disinformation.”
Wu accused members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and pundits on political talk shows of obliquely referring to him as a meddler in the procurement of a vaccine, which he said resulted in Internet users blatantly accusing him by name.
The Chinese-language China Times reported that KMT Taipei City Councilor Yu Shu-hui (游淑慧) and former KMT legislator Sun Ta-chien (孫大千) accused a DPP lawmaker surnamed Wu of bringing representatives of Taiwan Biotech and Jacobson Pharma to meet with Central Epidemic Command Center officials about purchasing the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The report quoted Sun as saying that the talks led to a new deal that raised the price from NT$31 to NT$40 per dose for the government, adding that Sun, Yu and other KMT politicians claimed that the new price would allow Wu to pocket a US$300 million kickback.
Asked about the accusations, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said: “No lawmakers interfered in the vaccine procurement policy, or came to lobby us to purchase doses from a certain firm.”
The center has mechanisms in place for vaccine procurement, including a legal team and an evaluation team, which are overseen by top center officials, he said.
“I can say with 100 percent certainty that no lawmakers came to lobby us, as they cannot meddle in the vaccine procurement process,” Chen said.
Taipei and Kaohsiung have extended an open invitation to Japanese pop star Ayumi Hamasaki after Chinese authorities abruptly canceled her scheduled concert in Shanghai. Hamasaki, 47, had been slated to perform on Saturday before organizers pulled the show at the last minute, citing “force majeure,” a move widely viewed as retaliation for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could draw a military response from Tokyo. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) yesterday said the city “very much welcomes” Hamasaki’s return and would continue to “surprise” her. Hamasaki, who has a large global fan base, including
Starting next month, people who signed up for the TPass 2.0 program can receive a 15 percent rebate for trips on mid to long-distance freeway buses or on buses headed to the east coast twice every month, the Highway Bureau said. Bureau Director-General Lin Fu-shan (林福山) said the government started TPass 2.0 to offer rebates to frequent riders of public transportation, or people who use city buses, highway buses, trains or MRTs at least 11 times per month. As of Nov. 12, 265,000 people have registered for TPass 2.0, and about 16.56 million trips between February and September qualified for
‘REGRETTABLE’: Travelers reported that Seoul’s online arrival card system lists Taiwan as ‘China (Taiwan),’ the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday urged South Korea to correct the way Taiwan is listed in its newly launched e-Arrival card system, saying the current designation downgrades the nation’s status. South Korea rolled out the online system on Feb. 24 to gradually replace paper arrival cards, which it plans to phase out by next year. Travelers must complete the electronic form up to 72 hours before entering the country. The ministry said it has received multiple complaints from Taiwanese travelers saying that the system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in dropdown menus for both “place of departure” and “next
The year 2027 is regarded as the year China would likely gain the capability to invade Taiwan, not the year it would launch an invasion, Taiwanese defense experts said yesterday. The experts made the remarks after President William Lai (賴清德) told a news conference on Wednesday that his administration would introduce a NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.8 billion) special defense budget bill to boost Taiwan’s overall defense posture over the next eight years. Lai said that Beijing aims for military unification of Taiwan by 2027. The Presidential Office later clarified that what Lai meant was that China’s goal is to “prepare for military unification
RSS