A top judicial official yesterday rejected claims of political bias after an investigation into alleged vote-buying in Miaoli County led to the start of a process to nullify Chung Tung-chin’s (鍾東錦) victory in the county’s commissioner vote.
Deputy Minister of Justice Tsai Pi-chung (蔡碧仲) rejected accusations by Chung that judicial officials were serving a political purpose and being selective in prosecution.
Prosecutors on Tuesday applied to invalidate the results of the Nov. 26 election in Miaoli after indicting three people linked to a township campaign office, alleging vote-buying activity.
Photo: CNA
“The judicial process was done in accordance with the law,” Tsai said at the legislature in Taipei. “We ask that politicians do not make claims that the judiciary is serving political interests. It is an insult to legal practitioners.”
“Prosecutors must start a civil litigation process to invalidate an election outcome within 30 days of official notice of the voting results,” he said.
“If there were a case that called for prosecutors to do so, but they did not, they would face reprimands and other disciplinary measures, so we hope the public can respect the decisionmaking of prosecutors,” he said.
Moreover, the courts are to rule on the situation and their decision should also be respected, he said.
Chung on Tuesday criticized the decision to apply to invalidate the election outcome.
“I am angry that Miaoli prosecutors filed to nullify my election win, this is outrageous,” Chung said. “This action by the prosecutors is deplorable. The justice system is serving its political masters.”
“They have no evidence against me, nor did they question me,” he said. “Applying to invalidate the result is totally out of proportion to the alleged offenses. I cannot fathom their thinking and I believe this particular head prosecutor has a mental illness for doing so.”
Chung said that he would file a complaint with the Control Yuan regarding the incident.
Later on Tuesday, Chung’s office in a statement said that “Miaoli prosecutors are tools of a particular political party and they no longer have judicial independence.”
“We very much regret their decision,” it said.
Chung — who has a history of violent crime — was elected as an independent county councilor in 2014, then joined the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and was made Miaoli County Council speaker in 2018.
The KMT expelled him from the party in September after he announced plans to run in the county commissioner race against the KMT’s nominee, Hsieh Fu-hung (謝福弘).
The Miaoli District Prosecutors’ Office is seeking to nullify the election outcome after it indicted three people — a woman surnamed Chiu (丘), a man surnamed Lin (林) and a man surnamed Chen (陳) — accusing them of paying township residents to vote for Chung and candidates in lower-level elections.
Miaoli County Head Prosecutor Chuang Chia-wei (莊佳瑋) last week said that Chen worked as a campaign office director in Dahu Township (大湖) and was also Chung’s campaign manager in the township.
Chung’s office has said that the three suspects acted of their own accord.
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