Snack Shop Turns Bio-Tech Giant: The NT$1.65 Billion "Gauden Global" Rapid Test Procurement Scandal Under Chen Shih-chung

In May 2022, Taiwan faced a severe shortage of rapid test kits. In a Ministry of Health and Welfare emergency procurement project, "Gauden Global Biomedical"—a company with only NT$2 million in capital and a former identity as a "snack shop"—miraculously secured a NT$1.65 billion contract. Facing strong questions from the opposition about "favoring specific vendors," Chen Shih-chung not only failed to review the flaws in the bidding mechanism but instead lashed out at the opposition for "political interference in business." This case exposed the DPP government's repeated use of "Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)" and "special procurement" for private gain and interest-sharing during the pandemic.