Gladys Liu probed on Chinese donor
Federal Liberal MP Gladys Liu held a party for Chisholm campaign volunteers at a Box Hill building owned by a developer who said Australia “couldn’t survive” without Chinese migrants.
National
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Embattled Liberal MP Gladys Liu held a party for the volunteers on her successful campaign for the seat of Chisholm at a building owned by a property developer who once said Australia “couldn’t survive” without Chinese migrants.
The event was held in June at a Box Hill building with a sign in the room championing China’s controversial Belt and Road Initiative.
The office building, at 851 Whitehorse Rd, is owned by the CBD Development Group Box Hill Pty Ltd, according to property records.
The company is owned by Chen Guo Jing, who has donated more than $50,000 to the Labor Party and once appeared beside Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews on a government trip to China.
The revelations came as Ms Liu refused to outline the complete list of organisations she was previously a member of that were linked to the Chinese Communist Party.
The Hong Kong-born MP instead said she was “confident” she was no longer linked to any organisations with “inappropriate associations”.
Ms Liu described Mr Chen as one of her “good friends” in her maiden speech to parliament in July.
The property developer once said in an interview: “If there were no Chinese, Australia couldn’t survive. Why? Luxury housing and expensive cars are all bought up by us Chinese … mineral and energy resources are all bought up by us Chinese.”
Asked whether Mr Chen had donated any money to Ms Liu’s election campaign or gifted her the room for the party, Ms Liu’s office said: “In regards to further questions regarding any donations, including those made by Mr Chen will be declared in the usual way.”
Mr Chen could not be reached yesterday.
A spokesman for Ms Liu said she had spent “a considerable amount of time” over the past three weeks reviewing her association with all community organisations.
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“Ms Liu has very clearly stated that she does not wish to be a member of any organisation that has not received her explicit consent,” her office said.
However, she did not respond to a series of questions from the Herald Sun about her previous associations with the United Chinese Commerce Association, Australian Jiangmen General Commercial Association and Federation of Chinese Associations in Victoria.
Originally published as Gladys Liu probed on Chinese donor