The justice and interior ministries said yesterday that they would look into the PFP's role in the disclosure of details of secret accounts at the National Security Bureau (NSB).
Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) said he would forward to prosecutors documents given to him by TSU lawmakers. Prosecutors will then decide if there's enough evidence to justify a search of the PFP's headquarters.
Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (余政憲) said a meeting would be held next week to determine whether the PFP's behavior in the scandal warrants punishment.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
The China Times and Next magazine reported last week that during former president Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) time in office, the NSB had set up two secret accounts, worth NT$3.5 billion, that were beyond legislative supervision.
The revelations have sparked a war of words between TSU and PFP legislators. Both parties have come out in defense of their leaders, PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) and the TSU's guru, Lee.
The reports in the China Times and Next referred to the two secret NSB accounts as Lee's "private stash." The reports cited information believed to have been provided by the bureau's former chief cashier, Colonel Liu Kuan-chun (
Critics have said the revelations have undermined the nation's diplomatic ties as well as information-gathering efforts in China and elsewhere.
The TSU has accused Soong of masterminding the revelations in an effort to undermine Lee.
Eight TSU lawmakers met with Chen yesterday to provide what they said was "solid evidence" to prove that the PFP had disseminated information about the secret accounts. They said they believe the PFP is still in possession of a large number of confidential documents provided by Liu.
PFP lawmakers said last week they were in possession of documents related to the NSB accounts. They said they turned over all of their documents to the Control Yuan -- the country's top watchdog body -- for investigation.
TSU legislative whip Hsu Deng-koun (許登宮) said he hoped PFP lawmakers would explain how they obtained the documents. He said investigators should search the PFP's headquarters if an explanation was not forthcoming.
TSU lawmakers yesterday said they have several reasons to believe the PFP distributed documents about the NSB's accounts.
They noted that Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀), director of the PFP's Policy Research Center, is a former official with the National Security Council -- which oversees the NSB.
They also cast suspicion on Hsieh Chung-liang (謝忠良), the reporter who wrote Next's cover story and the younger brother of PFP spokesman Hsieh Kung-ping (謝公秉). The TSU lawmakers said Hsieh has frequently visited China.
They also claim Soong contacted Liu during a recent trip to the US.
Calling the PFP a "pro-unification party," Hsu accused it of attempting to topple the government and said "the PFP and Beijing share the same purposes."
PFP Legislator Diane Lee (
Other PFP lawmakers said the TSU should provide the evidence to back up its accusations.
Meanwhile, DPP and TSU law-makers presented a petition to the Ministry of the Interior yesterday, calling for an investigation into whether the PFP violated the Constitution.
Under Article 5 of the Constitution, a party would violate the Constitution if its goals or activities endanger the existence of the country or the nation's free and democratic constitutional order.
DPP Legislator Susan Su (蘇治芬) said an investigation into the PFP's actions was warranted because it has undermined national security.
According to the law governing organizations, authorities can issue warnings, demand a group to improve within a set period of time or disband a group if it is found to have broken the law.
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
‘DETERRENT’: US national security adviser-designate Mike Waltz said that he wants to speed up deliveries of weapons purchased by Taiwan to deter threats from China US president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, affirmed his commitment to peace in the Taiwan Strait during his confirmation hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Hegseth called China “the most comprehensive and serious challenge to US national security” and said that he would aim to limit Beijing’s expansion in the Indo-Pacific region, Voice of America reported. He would also adhere to long-standing policies to prevent miscalculations, Hegseth added. The US Senate Armed Services Committee hearing was the first for a nominee of Trump’s incoming Cabinet, and questions mostly focused on whether he was fit for the
IDENTITY: Compared with other platforms, TikTok’s algorithm pushes a ‘disproportionately high ratio’ of pro-China content, a study has found Young Taiwanese are increasingly consuming Chinese content on TikTok, which is changing their views on identity and making them less resistant toward China, researchers and politicians were cited as saying by foreign media. Asked to suggest the best survival strategy for a small country facing a powerful neighbor, students at National Chia-Yi Girls’ Senior High School said “Taiwan must do everything to avoid provoking China into attacking it,” the Financial Times wrote on Friday. Young Taiwanese between the ages of 20 and 24 in the past were the group who most strongly espoused a Taiwanese identity, but that is no longer
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake and several aftershocks battered southern Taiwan early this morning, causing houses and roads to collapse and leaving dozens injured and 50 people isolated in their village. A total of 26 people were reported injured and sent to hospitals due to the earthquake as of late this morning, according to the latest Ministry of Health and Welfare figures. In Sising Village (西興) of Chiayi County's Dapu Township (大埔), the location of the quake's epicenter, severe damage was seen and roads entering the village were blocked, isolating about 50 villagers. Another eight people who were originally trapped inside buildings in Tainan
RSS