KMT Alleges Drone Firm Has 'Green' Cronies; DPP Says 'Report Corruption, Don't Spread Rumors'

Premier Cho Jung-tai stated that the drone industry has absolutely no connection to 'green friends'. Kuomintang (KMT) legislators Lo Ting-wei, Hsu Chiao-hsin, and others held a press conference today, questioning that Carbon-based Technology Inc.'s chairman Chen Wen-hung, CEO You Pei-wen, and independent director Hung Yao-nan all have 'green' backgrounds. They also noted that Chen Wen-hung and Hung Yao-nan joined Carbon-based Technology in the same year that President Lai Ching-te announced the 'Five Trusted Industries' initiative.

In response, DPP legislative caucus deputy secretary-general Chen Pei-yu stated that if opposition legislators truly believe the drone or defense industries are connected to 'green friends' and have found evidence of corruption, they should publicly report it, openly discuss it, and even let it enter the judicial process. This applies to every party and every industry. Only by presenting evidence and reasoning can a case be made, rather than simply trying to discredit everyone who has invested effort into the industry through rumors and slander.

Chen Pei-yu added that many young students and professional technical talents have poured their efforts into the unmanned vehicle industry, and their dedication and abilities should not be negated or erased in this manner.

Regarding the KMT legislators' questioning that Ministry of Defense contracts in the drone supply chain are all given to 'green friends', Premier Cho Jung-tai stated on the 19th that this is absolutely not the case and asked for evidence. He said the accusation is very serious, and if there is any proof, it should be presented, reiterating that the drone industry is absolutely not connected to 'green friends'.

KMT legislative caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang, along with KMT legislators Wang Hung-wei, Hsu Chiao-hsin, Lo Chih-chiang, and Lo Ting-wei, held a press conference today at the KMT caucus office in the Legislative Yuan titled 'Exposing the Insider Story of Gorging on Green Energy and Cashing in on Drones'.

Lo Ting-wei pointed out that Chen Wen-hung, chairman of the drone manufacturing company Carbon-based Technology, has a wide-ranging business empire. He was not only the former head of the DPP's Hsinchu County chapter and a long-term director of the Hsinchu County Tsai Ing-wen Friendship Association, but was also previously convicted of bribery during a run for councilor. He also noted that Hung Yao-nan, a former core aide to ex-President Tsai Ing-wen, appears on the shareholder list, and that Carbon-based Technology's CEO You Pei-wen was once an aide to former Chiayi Mayor Twu Shiing-jer.

Lo Ting-wei stated that it's not that there's no budget for drones, but that more of the budget is being wasted on these 'green friends'. For the same specifications, certain 'green friend' companies can receive contracts from the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology while also receiving government subsidies. He expressed hope for a 'non-green supply chain' in the future, in addition to the 'non-red supply chain'.

Hsu Chiao-hsin stated that the KMT supports the development of the drone industry but refuses to let it be tainted by 'green friends'. She expressed hope that the DPP government, in promoting the drone industry, would maintain integrity and that government contracts would not be obtainable simply through connections or a party membership card.

In response to the KMT legislators' doubts, DPP caucus secretary-general Fan Yun also said that foreign media like The Economist have reported on the promising prospects of Taiwan's drone industry. She questioned whether the opposition, by using alleged potential or yet-to-occur corruption cases, was deliberately obstructing Taiwan's defense upgrades and the establishment of its self-defense capabilities.