The case of a former ranking official at the National Communications Commission (NCC) found to have caused a forest fire last year has been turned over to the Disciplinary Court after he was impeached Monday for tainting the reputation of the government and public officials.

Eleven Control Yuan members voted unanimously to impeach former NCC senior specialist Joseph Chiao (???) during a review of the case on Monday, the Control Yuan, the government’s highest watchdog body, said in a statement.

Chiao, who has been suspended from his post at NCC since he was indicted in August last year on charges of violating the Forest Act, was then referred to the court that governs disciplinary action against civil servants throughout the country.

The court will determine his punishment after he was found having lied to police about his role in a fire that started on May 16, 2021, which burned nearly 80 hectares of forest land in Yushan National Park over a 12 day period and caused over NT$200 million (US$7.02 million) in damages.

An investigation report by the Control Yuan on the case indicated that Chiao lied to police when he claimed the blaze was started after he tripped over a gas stove while cooking breakfast.

Based on evidence collected by firefighters and forestry authorities, Chiao and four others were found to have built an illegal campfire on May 15, and Chiao did nothing to stop the others from cutting down tree branches to start the campfire at the Dujuan Campground on the Batongguan Traversing Trail.

Chiao’s attempts to mislead investigators seriously damaged the morale of government officials and undermined the government’s reputation, the Control Yuan report said.

According to Nantou prosecutors, the group lit a campfire to cook dinner at the campground on May 15, 2021, ignoring warnings on their park entry permits and at the campground that open fires were prohibited.

Chiao woke up at about midnight and discovered that embers from the campfire had caused a small fire, which he tried to put out before moving his tent away from the area and going back to sleep, prosecutors said.

It was only at about 4 a.m. that Chiao woke up again to find the fire was out of control, at which point he woke up his companions and reported the blaze to the Nantou County Fire Department.

On Aug. 25, the Nantou District Prosecutors Office indicted the five for stealing forest products and setting a fire that burned down a forest owned by others. If found guilty, they could face a penalty of up to seven years in jail.

In addition, the Forestry Bureau has sought NT$229 million from the five in compensation for the damage they caused.

According to the Control Yuan, from June 2019 to June 2021, Chiao submitted 12 applications to enter Yushan National Park, and served as a guide on 11 occasions.

From July 2016 to July 2021, he applied to the National Police Agency to hike in high mountains across Taiwan, an indication he was an experienced hiker.

An investigation after the incident discovered further evidence that Chiao frequently broke provisions in the Forestry Act.

For example, the Control Yuan found that on Oct. 3, 2020, Chiao was reported by the Nantou County Forest Bureau for violating the Forestry Act after he was caught building a campfire on a campground.

Screen shots taken from social media platforms also showed that Chiao posted multiple photos of himself building fires at forest campgrounds from 2013 to 2020.

Chiao admitted to Control Yuan members that he posted the pictures, an indication of his total disregard for the need to protect the forests, the report said.

As a result, Chiao must be held accountable for the May 16 forest fire based on the Forestry Act and for the fact that his dishonesty tainted the reputation of the government in line with the Functionary Service Act, according to the Control Yuan.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel