By Ho Ai Li
Taiwan Correspondent
2008/10/15
As the probe into former Taiwan president Chen Shui-bian’s alleged money-laundering activities and corruption gains momentum, he will face off, in court today, a former subordinate who is accused of covering up for him.
Former investigation chief Yeh Sheng-mao – detained on Monday to prevent him from coordinating his testimony with Mr Chen – is accused of tipping off the ex-president about a global watchdog’s investigation into the former first family’s suspected money-laundering activities, news of which first broke in August.
Mr Chen himself has said he expects to be arrested soon.
The court’s decision to detain Yeh – the first ex-investigation chief to be arrested – “will be the beginning of Mr Chen’s nightmare”, Taiwan News reported yesterday.
Even Mr Chen’s lawyer has expressed concern over the matter and knows that this will be an uphill battle for Mr Chen, it added.
Mr Chen has admitted that his wife Wu Shu-chen wired overseas US$20 million (S$29.2 million) from his past campaign funds, but said it was done without his knowledge. Taiwan media reported that more money may be involved. Investigations over the past weeks have reeled in more suspects and revealed overseas dummy accounts, as well as unearthed suspicions of bribery.
Yesterday, Madam Wu’s brother Wu Ching-mao, who is suspected of helping the Chens launder money through his Singapore accounts, became the first member of the Chen family to be detained.
Others who were detained earlier include Mr Chen’s aide Lin Teh-hsun, his cashier Chen Chen-hui and his wife’s close aide Tsai Ming-che.
Taiwan media also reported that businessman Kuo Chuan-ching of property developer Rich Development is suspected of bribing Madam Wu through Mr Tsai, in return for a construction project.
Despite Mr Chen’s scheduled court appearance today, he has lined up a visit to Yunlin today and to Pingtung tomorrow to rally his supporters.
Indeed, as investigations gather speed, Mr Chen has been busy criss-crossing the island to shore up support.
He has tried to portray the investigation against him and his family as political persecution, declaring that he is not afraid to be “the first political prisoner” under President Ma Ying-jeou’s government.
He has also tried to tar political leaders such as ex-president Lee Teng-hui and Kuomintang honorary chief Lien Chan with the same brush, accusing Mr Lee of money laundering and Mr Lien of involvement in an improper political donation.
Comparing Mr Chen to a mad dog who is biting crazily, political commentator Nan Fangshuo wrote: “This is to make supporters of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) believe that all the top politicians are the same.
“By investigating Mr Chen and not the others, it seems like political persecution. What looks like crazy actions are actually Mr Chen’s calculated moves.”
Political analyst Shih Cheng-feng said that Mr Chen is rallying his supporters in order to build a form of defence.
“It’s a test for our legal department. Usually we say politics should not interfere with the court’s verdict. But the legal department will also try to gauge what the politicians want and what is the public’s response.”
“If Mr Chen manages successfully to rally public support, maybe the legal action against him won’t not be too big,” said Professor Shih, dean of the College of Indigenous Studies at National Dong Hwa University.
The crux is whether prosecutors manage to find strong evidence to prove Mr Chen’s guilt, he added.
Analysts here note that Mr Chen still enjoys the support of a sizeable group of pro-independence voters, despite all the allegations against him.
This explains in part why DPP chairman Tsai Ing-wen has been careful not to publicly denounce Mr Chen, despite the damage he is causing to the image of the party. Mr Chen quit the DPP on Aug 15, after the money-laundering allegations against him and his family surfaced.
Over the weekend, when former DPP chief Hsu Hsin-liang blasted Mr Chen at the party’s 22nd birthday celebrations, he was booed by Mr Chen’s supporters.
So far, Mr Chen and his wife, his son Chih-chung and daughter-in-law Huang Jui-ching are among the nine who have been indicted in the money-laundering case.
Investigators are also looking into whether the money wired overseas is linked to Mr Chen’s alleged embezzlement of NT$14.8 million (S$668,000) from a fund for special presidential expenses.
As for Yeh, who was detained by the courts on Monday,<NO>he faces a new charge of helping Mr Chen profit illegally and faces at least five years in jail, if found guilty.
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