Earthquake relief funds questioned: Hualien County Social Affairs director investigated

Hualien County's Social Affairs Department director, Chen Chia-fu, is being investigated for alleged irregularities concerning earthquake relief funds donated in 2018. Investigators searched the department and took Chen for questioning, as the case probes accusations of unclear accounting for the funds.

The controversy resurfaced during a recall election last year when Foxconn chairman Terry Gou claimed his company and he personally donated over NT$50 million to Hualien County. However, former county magistrate Fu Kun-chi vehemently denied the existence of such funds, stating that all donations were managed by a committee and that Gou's claims were false. Gou maintained his statements were based on facts and was unfazed by threats of legal action.

This is not the first time Hualien's use of earthquake donations has faced scrutiny. In 2018, over NT$2.5 billion in donations were collected for the 0206 earthquake. Initial plans to allocate NT$800 million over four years to support the affected stone and tourism industries sparked a refund controversy. Further questions arose over a NT$10 million expenditure for printing receipts and promotional materials, which was initially reported as using public funds but later clarified as being from the relief donations, leading to an investigation by Control Yuan and a correction issued against the county government.

Concerns about fund allocation persist, with the Hualien County Council's Democratic Progressive Party caucus revealing last year that at least NT$720 million of the 0206 earthquake funds were used for public infrastructure rather than directly assisting victims. This lack of transparency and alleged misuse has eroded public trust, causing many to donate to central government agencies like the Ministry of Health and Welfare for subsequent disasters, rather than directly to the Hualien County government.