Legislator Wu Yu-sheng said the sum was audited by an accountant and reported to the highest government watchdog body Control Yuan.

The KMT legislator was responding to accusations by the main opposition Democratic Progressive Party, which questioned the legality of the donation.

DPP spokesman Tsai Chih-chang noted that Wu reportedly donated NT$6 million from his own campaign fund to an “anti-corruption” association in May 2008.

Wu is the head of the group, whose address is at a public relations company that has close ties with the legislator and the KMT camp, Tsai cited the Liberty Times as reporting.

The newspaper's report was based on information released by the Control Yuan concerning political donations.

Tsai said the law requires all political funds be monitored by the Control Yuan.

But Wu funneled the money from his “left hand” to his “right hand” in order to avoid the monitoring, Tsai alleged.

He demanded that investigators open a probe to see whether the money has been used properly in “anti-corruption” purposes, and whether the donation itself is illegal.

But Wu explained that he and several other local councilors set up the association in July 2007 to handle donations for the last legislative and presidential elections.

According to Wu, the group was registered with the Interior Ministry, with Wu as the chairman and Tainan City Councilor Hsieh Lung-chieh and vice chairman, the KMT lawmaker said.

In the run-up to the legislative and presidential elections, the association took out ads from TV and print media for campaigning purposes.

When the elections were over, Wu said the group was left with a cash shortfall of NT$6 million.

The group considered soliciting more donations from outsiders, but abandoned the idea fearing that this might be against the political donations law.

Wu said he decided to shoulder the fund, carving out NT$6 million from the unused portions of his own campaign funds.

“Everything can be proved to be legal by the accountant. There's a receipt and it was reported to the Control Yuan,” said Wu.

He said the group had wanted to be headquartered at Hsieh's voters service center in Tainan, but decided that it would be better to be in Taipei where its major operations would be conducted.

Wu said his own office at the Legislature had been considered, but they decided against it because it would create a case of illegitimate use of public resources for private purposes.

The group was then registered at an address of a public relations company run by Wu's friend, the lawmaker said.