Regional Joint Anti-Corruption Mechanism Established for Year-End Local Elections in Southern Taiwan

(Penghu County, December 16) Ahead of the year-end local elections, four district prosecutors' offices under the jurisdiction of the Kaohsiung High Prosecutors Office—Kaohsiung, Chiao Tung, Pingtung, and Penghu—established a regional joint anti-bribery and election-protection mechanism on the afternoon of December 15 to pursue cross-regional election interference crimes.

On December 15, the Penghu District Prosecutors Office hosted the 'Regional Joint Conference on Investigating Election Interference for Local Public Officials Elections.' Prosecutors attending included Huang Yuan-Kuan, Prosecutor-General of Kaohsiung District Prosecutors Office; Kuo Ching-Tung, Prosecutor-General of Chiao Tung District Prosecutors Office; and Lin Yen-Liang, Prosecutor-General of Pingtung District Prosecutors Office, all accompanied by prosecutors assisting with election monitoring in Penghu. Yeh Shu-Wen, Chief Prosecutor dispatched by Chu Chia-Chi, Prosecutor-General of Kaohsiung High Prosecutors Office, also attended to jointly discuss regional anti-bribery cooperation and preventive measures.

Wu Yi-Ming, Prosecutor-General of Penghu District Prosecutors Office, stated that with over one million overseas residents eligible to vote in the year-end local elections, there is a risk of 'elections being decided abroad.' To prevent this, enhanced regional cooperation in anti-bribery investigations is essential. Noting that the attending prosecutors have prior experience serving in outlying islands, Wu emphasized deeper understanding of island-specific election fraud tactics. He expressed hope to expand the scope of anti-bribery efforts based on existing collaborations, particularly in areas such as voter registration in outlying islands, fictitious household registrations, transportation subsidies, and intelligence gathering on bribery activities.

Yeh Shu-Wen conveyed instructions from High Prosecutor-General Chu Chia-Chi: 'Elections are a national celebration, a cornerstone of democracy, and a top priority for law enforcement.' Every prosecutor must recognize the foundation of democratic systems and uphold the three unwavering commitments: 'We will investigate, we will arrest, we will punish.' This demonstrates a firm stance of 'investigating all vote-buying, prosecuting all bribery, and holding all violations accountable.'

Yeh emphasized that under the supervision of the Kaohsiung High Prosecutors Office, the Penghu District Prosecutors Office has established this regional joint mechanism with Kaohsiung, Chiao Tung, and Pingtung offices. The High Prosecutors Office plays the role of the 'hoop' binding the barrel, enabling the four offices to share human resources and intelligence to track cross-jurisdictional election crimes. Any illegal acts discovered will be swiftly and strictly prosecuted. (Editor: Chang Ming-Kun) 1150616