Campaigners yesterday announced plans to file lawsuits against President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) as his presidential immunity from prosecution is about to expire.
At a forum hosted by the Taiwan Forever Association, association director Steve Wang (王思為) said his group would join the Northern Taiwan Society and Taiwan Association of University Professors today calling for prosecutors to launch investigations into alleged power abuse and corruption by Ma, and calling for prosecutors to restrict Ma from leaving the nation until investigations are concluded.
“While there have been many important criminal cases that have occurred during Ma’s terms as president and Taipei mayor, criminal investigations have been put on hold because of his immunity from prosecution while president,” Wang said, adding that Ma’s immunity would end once his term ends on May 20.
The lawsuit applications focus on Ma’s role in the leaking of details in a controversial wiretapping investigation of former Legislative Yuan speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), unexplained increases in his personal wealth while in office and the allegation that he worked to the benefit of corporations during his time as Taipei mayor, Steve Wang said.
Lawyer Huang Di-ying (黃帝穎), another Taiwan Forever Association director, said the Taiwan High Court’s final ruling on wiretapping charges against Prosecutor-General Huang Shih-ming (黃世銘) stated that Ma had instigated Huang to leak information related to the case, as well as leaking information himself.
“Huang would not have leaked the information to [then-premier] Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺), if Ma had not called him on Sept. 14, 2013, to ask him to leak it,” Huang said. “The weight of the materials in the ruling does not just point to a strong suspicion that Ma was implicated — the evidence is so clear that he has to be held responsible.”
Huang Shih-ming last year paid an NT$457,000 fine for violating the confidentiality of an ongoing investigation by revealing the results of the investigation to Ma, an action that raised questions over whether it opened the possibility for the abuse of presidential power.
Taipei Clean Government Committee member Jerry Cheng (鄭文龍) said there was also evidence that Ma had illegally profited the Farglory Group (遠雄集團) by agreeing to reduce the firm’s property royalties to zero for the Taipei Dome project at a secret meeting with company chairman Chao Teng-hsiung (趙藤雄).
Taiwan Forever Association secretary-general Kao Yung-cheng (高涌誠) said that there were also questions about the increase of Ma’s reported assets while in office, adding that increases had outstripped his income when donations were taken into account.
Restricting Ma from leaving the nation while investigation is under way was reasonable given treatment of former Democratic Progressive Party president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who was detained during an investigation into corruption allegations after he left office, Kao said, adding that Ma matches the criteria used to detain Chen, including strong suspicion of criminal wrongdoing, substantial national influence and possibility of flight.
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old