Ko Wen-je, founder and chairman of Taiwan’s opposition Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), was sentenced to 17 years in prison and stripped of his civil rights for six years by the Taipei District Court on Thursday (26th) over cases including the Jinghua City case. Ko held an international press conference in the evening, emphasizing that he did not engage in corruption or seek illicit gains, and addressed President Lai Ching-te, stating that he would never surrender or yield.
According to the "Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act," if a defendant receives a first-instance sentence of more than 10 years, even if not yet final, the person is ineligible to register as a presidential or vice-presidential candidate. This means Ko will lose his eligibility to run in the 2028 presidential election.
Professor Qu Zhaoxiang of the Department of National Development and Mainland China Studies at Chinese Culture University analyzed to "Lianhe Zaobao" that Ko Wen-je has issued a political mobilization order, which also means the window of opportunity for cooperation between the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the TPP—the “green-white coalition”—has completely closed, with no room left for negotiation. At the same time, it pushes the “blue-white coalition” between the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and the TPP to another peak.
On the same day, Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office of mainland China, responded to reporters by stating that the Lai Ching-te administration is manipulating the judiciary to suppress political opponents for its own political gain, implementing “green terror,” aggressively exploiting a “those who follow me thrive, those who oppose me perish” approach, which has sparked increasing discontent and opposition on the island. “He who repeatedly commits unjust acts will bring about his own ruin; these perverse actions will be opposed and spurned by the people of Taiwan.”
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council responded by stating that Taiwan’s judicial cases are adjudicated independently by judicial authorities and “do not need to be commented on by the Chinese Communist Party, nor is there any need to try to reap benefits for their united front work.”
After failing in his 2024 presidential bid, Ko Wen-je was investigated for improper handling of political donations and, due to the Jinghua City case involving the relaxation of floor area ratio, indicted by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office under the Anti-Corruption Act for four major offenses: accepting bribes in violation of official duties, seeking illicit gain, misappropriating public interest political donations, and breach of trust, with prosecutors seeking a 28 year and 6 month sentence.
On Thursday, the Taipei District Court sentenced Ko Wen-je to 13 years in prison and deprived him of his civil rights for 6 years for the crime of accepting bribes in violation of official duties; 2 years and 3 years and 6 months, respectively, for two counts of misappropriating public interest political donations; and 2 years and 6 months for breach of trust in the case of misusing public funds from the Everyone’s Expectation Foundation to pay campaign office staff salaries. Combined, Ko is to serve 17 years in prison and have his civil rights revoked for 6 years. The verdict can still be appealed.
The Taipei District Court’s press release stated that Ko Wen-je, through instructions from Wei Ching Group Chairman Shen Ching-ching, had seven Wei Ching Group employees make a total of TWD 2.1 million (approx. RM 262,800) in political donations to the Taiwan People’s Party under the guise of political donations, constituting the crime of bribery in violation of official duties.
Ko Wen-je stated at the press conference at NTU International Convention Center that the Jinghua City case was not about seeking the truth but about performing damage control for a political script that had already been written, that all rules of evidence had been abandoned, testimony selectively accepted, and procedural justice completely lost—“a show trial in the name of justice but at the service of politics.”
Ko Wen-je stated twice, “I did not seek illicit gain, nor did I commit corruption. I have a clear conscience.” He said that the TWD 2.1 million entered the Taiwan People’s Party account as political donations and that he had no knowledge of it: “If I was not involved at all, how could I possibly seek illicit gain?”
Ko Wen-je also challenged the DPP: “Do you think that by destroying one Ko Wen-je, you can sweep away obstacles to your future elections?”
He further addressed Lai Ching-te: “This trial is not over, Lai Ching-te, I will never surrender; Lai Ching-te, I will not yield.”
TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang said this was an unmitigated case of fabricated charges, that the TPP would not fear or shrink back, and would unite even more to stand by Ko Wen-je, fighting against “green authoritarianism” to the end. The TPP has called on supporters to take to Ketagalan Boulevard on Sunday (29th) to seek justice for Ko Wen-je.
The Kuomintang also voiced support for Ko Wen-je, stating that the harsh sentence failed to resolve public doubts and instead deepened negative perceptions of the judiciary as a political tool. The KMT firmly supports Ko Wen-je in exercising his legal rights to remedy the case and expects later trials to restore the truth.
The DPP responded with a statement, emphasizing that the party has always respected the judiciary, would not comment on individual cases, and would not accept unfounded accusations. The statement also called for the case to return to the facts and the law, “and asks the parties involved to respect the judiciary and face the outcome bravely.”