Wu Tse-yuan (; 17 August 1945 – 22 September 2008) was a Taiwanese politician and engineer known for his involvement in black gold politics and ties to gangs.

Education and early career

After graduating from National Pingtung Senior High School, Wu studied

criminology Criminology (from Latin , 'accusation', and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'', 'word, reason') is the interdisciplinary study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is a multidisciplinary field in both the behaviou ...

at Central Police University and obtained his bachelor's degree in 1971. He then earned a master's degree in

transportation engineering Transportation engineering or transport engineering is the application of technology and scientific principles to the planning, functional design, operation and management of facilities for any mode of transportation to provide for the safe, ...

from

National Chiao Tung University National Chiao Tung University (NCTU) was a public research university in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Established in 1896 as Nanyang Public School by an imperial edict of the Guangxu Emperor, it was one of China's leading universities. After the Chinese ...

in 1979 and his Ph.D. in

business administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

and engineering from

Chinese Culture University The Chinese Culture University (CCU; ) is a private Taiwanese university located in Yangmingshan in Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan. Established in 1962, CCU is one of the largest universities in Taiwan with an enrollment of about 32,000 student ...

in 1986. He later completed graduate studies in England when studying construction at The Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment of

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

Political career

A protégé of

Lee Teng-hui Lee Teng-hui (; pinyin: ''Lǐ Dēnghuī''; 15 January 192330 July 2020) was a Taiwanese politician and agricultural scientist who served as the fourth president of the Republic of China, president of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan) unde ...

, Wu was also close to

Wang Jin-pyng Wang Jin-pyng (; born March 17, 1941) is a Taiwanese politician. He served as President of the Legislative Yuan from 1999 to 2016, which makes him Taiwan's longest-serving legislative speaker. Once a leading figure of the Kuomintang (KMT), Wang ...

and

Lien Chan Lien Chan ( zh, t=連戰, w=, p=, poj=; born August 27, 1936) is a Taiwanese political scientist and politician. He was the chairman of the Taiwan Provincial Government from 1990 to 1993, premier of the Republic of China from 1993 to 1997, vice ...

. As leader of the Taiwan Provincial Planning and Developing Department from 1988 to 1992, Wu began taking kickbacks from a company installing water pumps in

Banqiao District Banqiao District () Banciao, Panchiao or Pan-ch'iao is a District (Taiwan), district and the seat of New Taipei City, Taiwan. It has the third-highest population density in Taiwan, with over . Until the creation of New Taipei City, Banqiao was a ...

. He contested the 1993 local elections as a Kuomintang candidate for the magistracy of Pingtung County and won reelection in 1997.Alt URL
/ref> Wu was indicted in 1996 for his actions in Banqiao, but not detained until a 1997 court order and had been released on medical parole in 1998. Later that year, local media reported Wu's expulsion from the Kuomintang.Alt URL
/ref> He gained legal immunity in December via his election to the

Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan () is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for four-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a ...

, as a representative for

Pingtung County Pingtung () is a County (Taiwan), county located in southern Taiwan. It has a warm tropical monsoon climate and is known for its agriculture and tourism. Kenting National Park, Taiwan's oldest national park, is located in the county. The county ...

. In January 2000, Wu Tse-yuan and Lien Chan were accused of land speculation in Wuqi, Taichung, dating back to 1993. On 30 November 2000, the Taiwan High Court sentenced Wu to fifteen years imprisonment for the Banqiao corruption case. A week later, the Executive Yuan proposed an amendment to the Public Officials Election and Recall Law targeting Wu and other politicians involved with black gold politics. The amendment sought to bar anyone serving a suspended sentence, a sentence longer than ten years imprisonment, or a death sentence from seeking public office. In addition, convicted racketeers released within ten years of an election would also be illegible for that election cycle. In March 2001, Wu was indicted in another corruption scandal involving the Pali Sewage Treatment Plant. He,

Lo Fu-chu Lo Fu-chu (; born 2 July 1943) is a former Taiwanese legislator and a self-described leader of the "Celestial Alliance" organized crime group. In the late 1990s and early 2000s he was known as the most notorious person involved with organized c ...

, and other legislators planned on founding a new political group affiliated with Lee Teng-hui in 2001, but the proposal was postponed that July. Wu left for Japan on 29 December 2001 as part of a junket, and never returned to Taiwan. He was tracked to

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

some time later. In 2004, Taiwan Pineapple Group executive Huang Tsung-hung claimed that he bribed Wu in 1999 and asked Wu to help him secure a loan for his company.

Personal life

Wu Jin-lin Wu Jin-lin (; born 6 October 1947) is a Taiwanese politician. He served as the President of the Examination Yuan from 2014 to 2020. He also briefly served as President of the Examination Yuan in 2008. Education Wu received his bachelor's and m ...

is his younger brother. The younger Wu ran for a Pingtung County seat in the legislative elections of 2004, and won. The ''

Apple Daily ''Apple Daily'' ( zh, t=蘋果日報, j=ping4 gwo2 jat6 bou3) was a Chinese-language newspaper published in Hong Kong from 1995 to 2021. Founded by Jimmy Lai and part of Next Media, ''Apple Daily'' was known for its sensational headlines, ...

'' was the first Taiwanese publication to report Wu Tse-yuan's death in September 2008, but immediately afterward, both Wu Jin-lin and the

Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

refused to confirm media reports.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wu, Tse-yuan Members of the 4th Legislative Yuan Magistrates of Pingtung County 1945 births 2008 deaths Pingtung County Members of the Legislative Yuan Expelled members of the Kuomintang Taiwanese politicians convicted of corruption Taiwanese politicians convicted of bribery National Pingtung University of Education alumni National Taiwan University alumni National Chiao Tung University alumni Chinese Culture University alumni Alumni of the University of London Taiwanese expatriates in China Fugitives wanted by Taiwan Fugitives wanted on bribery charges Central Police University alumni