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VP sues magazine for
allegations
GETTING DEFENSIVE: The Presidential Office
secretary-general joined Wu Den-yih in filing suits against ‘Next Magazine’ for
alleging they were linked to corruption
By Mo Yan-chih / Staff reporter
Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and Presidential Office Secretary-General Tseng
Yung-chuan (曾永權) yesterday both filed defamation lawsuits against the
Chinese-language Next Magazine for alleging that they had played roles in the
corruption scandal involving former Executive Yuan secretary-general Lin Yi-shih
(林益世).
Wu had asked the magazine to issue a retraction of its allegations that he
introduced businessman Chen Chi-hsiang (陳啟祥) to Lin, who allegedly accepted
NT$63 million (US$2.15 million) from Chen to help secure contracts with China
Steel Corp (中鋼) and its subsidiaries.
“The magazine failed to clarify the allegations. Instead, it continued to
publish incorrect reports about Vice President Wu’s role in the case. Vice
President Wu respects freedom of speech, but has decided to file a suit in order
to defend his reputation,” said Fu Tzu-sheng (傅祖聲), a lawyer for Wu.
Wu filed a civil suit against the magazine, its publisher Pei Wei (裴偉),
editor-in-chief Chiu Ming-hui (邱銘輝) and reporter Tsai Hui-chen (蔡慧貞).
Fu said he would advise Wu to withdraw the suit if the magazine complies with
Wu’s demand that it print a full-page retraction of the allegations.
The magazine first reported on the Lin scandal in June and Lin has been detained
since July 2 after allegedly confessing to accepting money from Chen during his
tenure as a legislator two years ago.
In its follow-up coverage on the scandal, the magazine also linked Wu’s friends
and family members to the corruption scandal, and alleged in consecutive issues
last month that Wu’s wife, Tsai Ling-yi (蔡令怡), his sister-in-law, Hau Ying-chiao
(郝英嬌), and his family friend Wu Men-chung (吳門忠) were all involved in the case.
Wu Den-yih has spent the past weeks clarifying the reports that hinted about his
and his family’s possible roles in the Lin scandal.
Meanwhile, Tseng, a former vice legislative speaker who was appointed to his
post at the Presidential Office in February, was also alleged to have been
involved in the scandal.
Political commentators Chen Tung-hao (陳東豪) and Huang Kuan-chin (黃光芹) further
hinted at his role in the case by saying that “another secretary-general at a
high level” was also involved.
Tseng had issued a statement denying the accusations. He said yesterday in a
statement that he has asked his lawyer to file criminal lawsuits against Chen,
Huang and the magazine for damaging his reputation through groundless
accusations.
Whether unfounded or not, the allegations against the two top officials in
President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration have pushed Ma’s public support to
a new low of 15 percent.
In the latest survey released by Taiwan Indicate Survey Research last week, only
32.7 percent of respondents said they trusted Ma, while only 24.3 percent of
those polled found Wu trustworthy.
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