Let me see if I got this right. Taiwan gives money to Costa Rica for tourism stuff. CR uses it to pay salaries of embassy staff in Taipei or in foreign countries other than Taiwan?
QUOTE: Costa Rican President Abel Pacheco admitted on Tuesday that Taiwan’s money had paid for a government job for his daughter, Elsa Pacheco, who works at the Costa Rican embassy in
Mexico,
and was being paid US$1,500 a month from funds Taiwan gave to the foreign ministry.
Pacheco also told reporters that his daughter had worked at the embassy as a volunteer but could no longer afford to continue for free, so he found a way for her to receive a salary.
MEXICO? So the Taiwan diplomatic bribe money for CR is used to pay the President’s daughter’s salary at the CR embassy in …Mexico?
How deep is this scandal going to go?
Maybe some funds are also used to pay for Pacheco’s wife’s hair salon visits in Paris after shopping in London?
This is reediculous! MEXICO? What does Mexico have to do with Costa Rica?
taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/ … 2003157111
Does this even surprise you? Wasn’t another embassy involved in a car theft ring here a few years back?
Flicka, NOTHING surprises me anymore. But I do remain perplexed as to how funds used to bribe Cost Rica end up paying for the Prez’s daughter’s salary at the CR Embassy in Mexico, no relation to Taiwan at all. !!!
Normal bribery I understand. Giving money to CR to use in Cost Rica for bribery I understand. Par for the course. PKO, as they say, “Par Keeping Operations.”
But MEXICO? How does Mexico figure into this equation? Explain this to me, flicka.
If the money was used to pay CR salaries at its office in Taipei, for example, par for the course. Or used to pay CR salaries at the Taipei trade office in CR, par for the course. But MEXICO? What does MEXICO have to do with Taiwan-CR relations?
But yeh, you are right, nothing is really so surprising. Just funny, in a Keystone Kops kind of way.
The amount of money involved is so trifling that it’s ridiculous to make a fuss about it.
lane119:
What scandal?
It was stillborn. No one cares. Now if the ROC had been paying Michael Jordan’s salary…
Wasn’t there a news story recently about Costa Rica being the go-to place for underage hookers? Maybe that explains what this girl did for the money!
It wasn’t a car “theft ring”, as I recall, but it was a little dodgy. The ambassador was offered a complimentary car from, if memory serves, the Taiwan government. After his term was up, it was taken for granted that the car was his to do with as he saw fit, so he sold it. Needless to say, when the story hit the news, the local government was hard pressed for answers, hence the ''theft" cover.
I’m sure there’s a lot more that the local government does to retain official diplomatic ties with the few countries that recognize it and that the PRC does the same to try and lure them away.
CK
Do you realize how far a grand and a half will go in Central America?
“Diplomatic Immunity” is nice if you can get it. What did ROC “diplomats” used to send to the US in courier pouches? now that was a dozy.
In a perfect world, standing by Taiwan
Why is the money considered bribery? And once Taiwan ‘gives’ the money to them can’t they do with it as they please?
I think once again, we are making a big deal out of nothing… 