A former Taichung official this week said that Yen Kuan-heng (顏寬恒), who is the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate for a Jan. 9 by-election for Taichung’s second electoral district, illegally built part of a house protected land.
Yen is running against Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to fill the seat of Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟) of the Taiwan Statebuilding Party, who was recalled on Oct. 23.
Former Taichung Information Bureau director-general Cho Kuan-ting (卓冠廷) on Thursday said that Yen illegally built a luxury mansion partly on public land designated as protected in the city’s Longjing District (龍井).
Photo: Chang Jui-chen, Taipei Times
Earlier this month, the Taichung City Government ordered Yen to tear down an illegal structure in Nantun District (南屯) that was on public land designated to become a children’s park.
Cho said that construction on the property started in 2012, and the 1,000 ping (3,306m2) home was registered under the name of Yen’s wife, Chen Li-ling (陳麗凌).
Chen Li-ling secured a 20-year rental contract for the plot, paying NT$11,664 per year, Cho added.
Photo: Ho Tsung-han, Taipei Times
“It is such a low price that their monthly rent is less than NT$1,000,” Cho said.
He said that Yen and Chen Li-ling initially applied for a regular building permit, and later applied and received an occupancy permit.
“Yen then contravened the conditions of the permits for ‘second phase’ construction, in which he built a much larger structure, transforming it into a luxury mansion with enclosures, a front gate and driveways,” Cho said. “The front section of the plot is on public land designated as a protected area.”
Yen’s campaign spokesman on Friday cited Yen as saying that only the front section is on public land belonging to the National Property Administration, for which Yen has paid the required amount, and the plot is being rented in compliance with the law.
Yen yesterday added that his family has followed the law in all matters pertaining to the property.
He said that his critics are not the judges of what is legal, adding that the property was built two decades ago when Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) of the DPP was the mayor of Taichung.
Legal concerns over the property should have been raised then, as making it an issue now only suggests that there was administrative negligence on the party of the then-city government, Yen said.
Speaking at a rally in Wurih District (烏日), Lin Ching-yi said that Yen is “a repeat offender in using legal and regulatory loopholes to steal public land.”
Additional reporting by Chang Jui-chen and He Tsung-han
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