In response to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office's indictment of Taiwan People's Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je today (December 26th), the TPP held an international press conference in the afternoon, accusing the authorities of "political persecution and judicial injustice." Despite a four-month investigation, the prosecutors failed to uncover any evidence of financial misconduct, instead relying on weak and unsubstantiated evidence to build their case. The TPP asserts that this indictment confirms the use of prolonged detention to extract coerced statements and fabricate charges. Furthermore, the party denounces the collaboration between political forces, judicial authorities, and media outlets to manipulate public opinion, tarnish Chairman Ko's reputation, and launch a politically motivated attack against the Taiwan People's Party. The TPP calls for the case to be transferred to the Taipei District Court for transparent public trial proceedings and demands the immediate release of Chairman Ko Wen-je to ensure justice and fairness.

 

The international press conference, held in the afternoon, includes members of the Emergency Response Team Fu Nan (Frank) Lin, Huang Kuo-chang, Wei-Hua Lee, TPP Secretary General Vincent Chou, and TPP-affiliated legislators and councilors. Together, they expressed

their unified commitment to defending the innocence of Chairman Ko Wen-je. Frank Lin strongly criticized the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for abusing its authority, alleging it had devolved into a political tool and orchestrated a destructive campaign against the TPP. He described this as the darkest day in Taiwan's democratic history and called on President Lai Ching-te's administration to refrain from further politicizing the judiciary. Affirming their unwavering belief in Chairman Ko's innocence, Lin emphasized that this is not only about defending Ko Wen-je but also about protecting judicial integrity and upholding the core values of democracy.

 

 

 

Ko Wen-je Falsely Accused and Indicted Without Intervening in The Floor Area Ratio Reviewing Process. 

During the press conference, the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) countered point by point to the charges in the Taipei District Prosecutors Office's indictment. Regarding the prosecutors' assertion that the Core Pacific City Case involved "floor area ratio bonuses under urban renewal regulations," Huang Kuo-chang criticized the claim, stating that the project was submitted under Article 24 of the Urban Planning Act, not the Urban Renewal Regulations. He pointed out that many scholars and experts have publicly stated that the floor area ratio bonuses for Core Pacific City" did not violate any laws." Therefore, there was no basis for the charge of "knowingly and intentionally" benefiting others with unlawful gains. Furthermore, the TPP highlighted a report from the Taipei City Council, which revealed that former Deputy Mayor Pong Cheng-sheng and former Director of the Department of Urban Development Huang Ching-mao both testified that Chairman Ko Wen-je "never instructed any public officials to engage in illegal activities." While the members of the Urban Development Committee who approved the floor area ratio bonuses were not indicted, Chairman Ko, who had no involvement, was nonetheless charged. The TPP condemned this as a fabrication of charges.

 

 

The Core Pacific City Case Is Not An Exception: “Lai Was Allowed to Do So but Ko Wasn’t”

In fact, the Core Pacific City Case is not an exception, as there are similar cases nationwide. For example, during the tenure of former Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-pin, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel was approved for floor area ratio bonuses, and under former Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te, floor area ratio bonuses were increased from 180% to 440%. Huang Kuo-chang raised the question, "Why could Lai Ching-te do it, but Ko Wen-je could not?" In addition, the floor area ratio bonuses for the Ambassador Hotel in Kaohsiung reached as high as 1142.4%. Yet, despite these precedents, Chairman Ko Wen-je is falsely accused of benefiting unlawfully from the project. The TPP condemned this as a case of "Double Standard Under the DPP Regime."

 

Taipei District Prosecutors Abuse Power by Using "Vague Time and Place" in Indictment

Regarding the 2.1 million NTD political donations for which Zhu Yahu has pleaded guilty, Huang Kuo-chang stated that the TPP had received a tip-off regarding a personal feud between Zhu Yahu and Shen Qing-jing. Huang clarified that any malicious accusations made by Zhu against Shen were a matter between them, but if Zhu's actions were driven by revenge against Shen and involved framing an innocent person like Chairman Ko Wen-je, the Taiwan People's Party would not stand by idly. Huang emphasized that the truth would inevitably come to light during the trial's cross-examination.

 

After four months of investigation, the prosecutors were unable to find any evidence of money trails, yet they absurdly labeled the 15 million recorded in an Excel file as bribe money. The indictment further includes the absurd claim of "receiving money personally at a certain time and place." Huang Kuo-chang criticized the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for failing to specify when or where Chairman Ko Wen-je allegedly received the money. Instead, the prosecutors arbitrarily selected a specific timeframe and claimed that 16 million was involved, with 15 million allegedly handed directly to Ko. However, no evidence was presented, not even witness testimony to support these allegations.

 

 

 

The Taipei District Prosecutors Office has failed to find any evidence of the alleged 15 million NTD bribe, yet media commentators have been making baseless claims for the past four months. They have previously accused various locations—Chen Pei-chi's account, Ko Wen-je's home, a "cold wallet," the mayor's office, the Core Pacific City construction site, a septic tank, and even Singapore—without presenting any factual support. The Taiwan People's Party (TPP) calls on these commentators to publicly apologize for their reckless and unfounded statements.

 

Confiscation and Political Suppression: Annihilation of Political Rivals

Regarding the Taipei District Prosecutors Office's claim of political donations and public fund misappropriation, TPP Secretary-General Vincent Chou criticized the Lai administration for perfectly demonstrating how to use state machinery to take down political opponents by misinterpreting commercial revenue as political donations. For example, the prosecutors absurdly equated the high price of Ko Wen-je's concert tickets with political donations, which he called illogical. Chou pointed out that members of the Taiwan Prestige And Solicitude Foundation, who are engaged in charity work, provided long-term care policy advice to Ko Wen-je during his campaign, which is no different from the operations of the New Frontier Foundation. Chou even referred to his own past experience as the Deputy Director of the Youth Development Department of the New Frontier Foundation, which was aligned with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Following the logic of the Taipei District Prosecutors Office, Chou questioned whether Lai Ching-te's New Frontier Foundation in 2024 would be considered to have misappropriated political donations from the DPP. He argued, "Is this reasonable? Why could Lai Ching-te do it, but Ko Wen-je must be punished for the same thing?"

 

 

Regarding the case of MuKo, the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) clarified during a press conference on August 29th that Muko operates in the same manner as Tsai Ing-wen's "Iing's Goods" and Lai Ching-te's "Lai Sang Shop." The indictment by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office also confirmed that accountant Duanmu Zheng improperly recorded political donation accounts, which severely impacted the TPP. The TPP sent a letter to the Control Yuan requesting corrections but was told that the necessary forms could only be processed by the individual who filed them or with a power of attorney from Ko Wen-je, which, the TPP argued, was a deliberate attempt to obstruct the process.

 

Stop Forced Confession: The TPP Believes that the Judicature Will Ultimately Restore Chairman Ko’s Innocence 

Finally, Huang Kuo-chang emphasized that the democracy and rule of law earned by Taiwan's democratic pioneers should not be allowed to degrade to this point. He criticized the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for releasing information unrelated to the case today and questioned its purpose. He argued that this was part of a deliberate effort to allow media and online forces controlled by certain parties to humiliate and tarnish the character of Ko Wen-je. Huang reaffirmed the TPP's unwavering belief in Chairman Ko's innocence over the past four months and expressed confidence that once the judicial process is completed, Chairman Ko will receive the justice he deserves. He called for a fair public trial, the cessation of forced confessions, and the immediate release of Chairman Ko Wen-je.