Independent presidential candidate Ellen Huang (黃越綏) said yesterday that the indictment of former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) over embezzlement of public funds was aimed at attacking Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).

“The most pathetic thing about Lee’s indictment was political intervention through the judiciary, making it a political tool to blow away [the ruling party’s] political rivals,” Huang said during a -gathering with netizens in Taipei yesterday evening.

Huang said that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅) recently said the charge against Lee would point to Tsai’s involvement in an “816 project” under the secret diplomacy funds from which Lee allegedly embezzled. The 816 project was part of the Mingteh Project (明德專案) focusing on secret diplomacy with the US and Japan. Chiu alleged that Tsai received NT$2.62 million (US$91,147) from the 816 project and passed the money to Yang Chih-heng (楊志恆), who Chiu said was involved in the money-laundering charge against Lee.