Former deputy minister of national defense Michael Tsai (蔡明憲) yesterday filed a defamation suit against Pei Wei (裴偉), editor-in-chief of the Chinese-language Next Magazine and two others people after the magazine accused Tsai of selling military promotions.
The magazine ran a story accusing Tsai of taking bribes in exchange for promoting 10 lieutenant generals and major generals last year.
key player
The magazine singled him out as the key player in a recent string of corruption allegations involving the ministry.
Prosecutors have listed Tsai and several senior military officials accused of buying their positions as suspects in the case.
Tsai said he had been wrongly accused and denied selling military positions.
FALSE
“The Next Magazine report is completely false,” he said. “When I was in office, I had never heard of any rumors of selling or buying positions. I am in favor of cracking down on or investigating alleged corruption.”
He said all the officers he promoted had been approved by the personnel department and that all personnel changes had been agreed upon by the former or current president.
Prosecutors earlier this month indicted former lieutenant general Yuan Hsiao-lung (袁肖龍) and 11 businessmen on charges of bribery and blackmail in a scandal in which several high-ranking officers were accused of securing promotions by offering bribes.SCANDAL
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) have both denied any involvement in the alleged cash-for-promotions scandal.
Next Magazine is well-known for its aggressive reporters and bold reporting style, which has embroiled it in a number of controversies.
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