Miaoli County prosecutors yesterday said that a commissioner’s election might be overturned if their investigation leads to a conviction in a vote-buying case.
Three people this week were indicted on vote-buying charges in Miaoli amid investigations there and elsewhere into alleged election contraventions in the wake of last month’s nine-in-one polls.
The trio — who prosecutors said had links to Miaoli County commissioner-elect Chung Tung-chin (鍾東錦) — are a woman surnamed Chiu (丘), a man surnamed Lin (林) and a manager of a township-area election campaign surnamed Chen (陳).
Photo: CNA
Chung, who was speaker of the Miaoli County Council while a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), ran as an independent in the Nov. 26 election, which he won with 42.66 percent of the vote.
“Chen headed Chung’s campaign team in Miaoli’s Dahu Township (大湖) and also worked for Fu Song-lin (傅松琳), a candidate for township mayor,” prosecutors said.
Fu, also an independent candidate, did not win his election. He supported Chung in the commissioner election after both quit the KMT before announcing their candidacies.
Miaoli County lead prosecutor Chuang Chia-wei (莊佳瑋) said that there was sufficient evidence to keep Chen and Chiu in custody, while Lin was released on NT$50,000 bail.
“The investigation indicates that the trio gave people NT$2,000 each to vote for Chung and Fu, as well as other candidates,” a court filing said.
Chen gave bundles of cash to Chiu and Lin, who conducted the alleged vote-buying, the filing said.
“One resident surnamed Chang (張) received NT$10,000 from Chen and Chiu because he promised the two that he would vote for Chung, Fu, a candidate for village warden and two township representative candidates,” Chuang said.
Another resident received NT$4,000 to cast ballots for four candidates, including Chung and Fu, he said.
Chung on Friday denied knowledge of the alleged vote-buying.
“In the run-up to the elections, we pledged a clean campaign,” he said. “Any illegal activities were organized by Chen and our campaign team had nothing to do with it.”
“We have been tainted by Chen’s activities, which he undertook of his own accord,” Chung said.
Miaoli prosecutors have unfairly released information during an ongoing investigation to falsely accuse the commissioner-elect of buying votes, Chung’s office said, adding that it would sue any party that tries to link Chung to the charges.
Prosecutors said that they would adhere to the law and follow correct judicial procedures.
If there is a conviction, it might instigate proceedings to invalidate election results that were affected, they said.
Election rules say a motion to invalidate an election must be filled within one month of official notification of the results, unless there are extraneous circumstances.
Elsewhere, prosecutors in Taoyuan yesterday questioned a person surnamed Chang (張) after reports that people were treated to banquets at which votes were solicited.
FUKUOKA SITUATION: Japanese media reported that the pathogen is expected to be identified by the summer, while the CDC downplayed the idea that it was hMPV A “mysterious cold-like illness” reported in Japan’s Fukuoka Prefecture does not seem to be a new disease, but Japanese authorities have been asked about the situation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. The Fukuoka Prefectural Medical Association on Wednesday told a news conference that a “mystery cold” that has become a hot topic on social media is “highly likely to be caused by some kind of viral infection,” Japan’s KBC News reported. “Many people are experiencing symptoms starting with a sore throat, followed by a runny nose, phlegm and a severe cough,” KBC News reported, citing association officials. Health authorities are
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) arrived in Taiwan yesterday ahead of upcoming AI and technology events, saying he plans to meet with clients and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) during his visit. After landing at Taipei Songshan Airport, Huang posed for photos with fans and handed out Yakult drinks to reporters and supporters waiting at the scene, saying he has “a lot to do” during the trip. Asked about reports that Nvidia’s planned headquarters site in Taipei’s Beitou Shilin Technology Park could break ground on May 27, Huang said that if the company holds an event, he would
Carrefour Taiwan is to begin using a new name from the start of July, but it cannot divulge the name until then, the chairman of the supermarket chain's parent company said today. President Chain Store Co chairman Lo Chih-hsien (羅智先) was asked by reporters after a shareholders' meeting to confirm whether the company has settled on a new name for the supermarket brand. In March, the government-registered name of two Carrefour Taiwan branches was quietly changed to "Le Chia Kang" (樂家康) in Chinese, raising speculation that has been selected as the name. Lo said that because of local regulations and contractual obligations, the
The Philippines would likely be involved in any conflict over Taiwan due to its proximity to the democracy claimed by China, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said, reiterating a stance that risks angering Beijing. “In the Philippines, we do not have a choice because Taiwan is so close to the Philippines and we have almost 200,000 Filipino nationals living and working in Taiwan,” Marcos said in an interview with Japanese media in Manila on Monday. The Philippine leader’s comments come ahead of a state visit to Japan next week, where he is to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to discuss security
RSS