Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday confirmed that he used about NT$43 million (US$1.35 million) from his presidential election subsidy to purchase an office unit near the Legislative Yuan in May.
Ko made the remarks after Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) earlier in the day told a news conference that she received a tip-off that the TPP chairman had purchased a 48.76 ping (161.2m2) office unit at Jinan Building (濟南大樓), a commercial building in Taipei’s Zhongzheng District (中正).
Lin said that Ko purchased the unit on May 10, paying about NT$43 million in cash, and signed the property deed under his name.
Photo: CNA
Citing Ko’s personal financial disclosure as a presidential candidate filed on Nov. 20 last year, Lin said Ko and his wife, Peggy Chen (陳佩琪), had only about NT$24.64 million in savings and about NT$954,000 in other holdings, sparking questions about where he obtained the money to purchase the office unit.
The office is close to the NT$120 million luxury apartment that Chen reportedly visited and was considering purchasing last month, Lin said.
This has led to speculation on whether the couple had made false statements in their public disclosure or had received a huge sum of money.
“Where did the cash to purchase the office come from,” Lin asked, adding fire to recent speculation about discrepancies in the accounting reports on Ko’s election campaign’s political donations, election subsidy and funding from unknown sources.
The TPP received about NT$110 million in election subsidies, which it in January said would be used for party operations, charity and visiting local communities to hear from voters, she said.
If Ko had used the subsidy to purchase a property under his name, that would be going against his promise, she added.
Article 41 of the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法) states that “if a pair of candidates received not less than one-third of the total vote, they shall receive a campaign expense subsidy of NT$30 per vote,” so Ko’s campaign received about NT$110 million, Lin said.
Asked for comment, Ko said that according to the TPP’s rules — which he said were modeled after other political parties’ — two-thirds of a candidate’s election subsidy belongs to the candidate, so he used that portion of the subsidy to purchase the commercial unit to set up his personal office.
He said he simply followed the practice of previous presidential candidates and set up a personal office.
TPP legislative caucus director Vicky Chen (陳智菡) said that Ko having a personal office is just like former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) having a personal office after stepping down as president and during her term as DPP chairperson.
Tsai’s office later yesterday said that Tsai had never used her election subsidy to purchase any real estate, neither under her own name nor under any foundation.
The offices for her foundation or personal office after she stepped down as president are rented, it added.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu said the party had a tight budget, so the presidential candidates’ election subsidy was all used on party expenses and party workers’ salary.
President William Lai (賴清德) had announced that he would donate one-third of the candidate’s election subsidy to charity, one-third to caring for disadvantaged party founding members and subsidizing young party workers to study abroad, and one-third to the DPP.
Additional reporting by CNA
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
A former soldier and an active-duty army officer were yesterday indicted for allegedly selling classified military training materials to a Chinese intelligence operative for a total of NT$79,440. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office indicted Chen Tai-yin (陳泰尹) and Lee Chun-ta (李俊達) for contravening the National Security Act (國家安全法) and the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例). Chen left the military in September 2013 after serving alongside then-staff sergeant Lee, now an army lieutenant, at the 21st Artillery Command of the army’s Sixth Corps from 2011 to 2013, according to the indictment. Chen met a Chinese intelligence operative identified as “Wang” (王) through a friend in November
RSS