Taipei: At least 10 individuals in Taichung and Changhua County were questioned by prosecutors on Friday in connection with alleged signature falsification in recall campaigns against lawmakers. In a brief statement, the Taichung District Prosecutors Office mentioned that the individuals are being investigated for potential violations of the Personal Data Protection Act and the Criminal Code related to document falsification.
According to Focus Taiwan, an investigation is ongoing into reports of falsified personal information on recall petitions targeting five lawmakers. The office did not disclose their names or party affiliations. However, the investigation reportedly involved campaigns to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers Tsai Chi-chang and Ho Hsin-chun, and Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers Yen Kuan-heng, Liao Wei-hsiang, and Huang Chien-hao.
Searches were carried out at eight locations in Taichung and Changhua County earlier Friday. These included the offices of "one or more political party" as well as the residences and district offices of those individuals taken in for questioning, prosecutors said, without clarifying which party or parties were involved.
Meanwhile, Yen Wen-cheng, chairperson of the KMT Taichung Chapter, confirmed to CNA earlier that the chapter's office had been searched by prosecutors. Without providing further details, Yen stated that the chapter is cooperating with prosecutors and police in the investigation. KMT staff members Wu Kang-lung and Yang Ta-wei were among those taken in for questioning following the search.
In a separate statement, the KMT Taichung Chapter expressed its respect for the judiciary's handling of the case in accordance with the law. It emphasized that the judiciary must uphold the principles of neutrality and fairness and should not be influenced or manipulated by political forces. "Judicial procedures should be based on facts and centered on evidence, and must not become a political tool used to suppress dissent or influence elections," the chapter urged.
The raids in Taichung and Changhua are part of a series of similar incidents carried out recently by prosecutors in Taipei, New Taipei, and Keelung, targeting allegations of fraudulent signature collection by KMT campaigns seeking to recall DPP lawmakers.