A Taiwanese opposition lawmaker says she has inside information that senior justice officials meddled in a tainted cooking-oil investigation, and the ministry has flatly denied it — a fresh political fight over food safety and prosecutorial independence.

• KMT legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin claims a top Justice Ministry official worked with a veteran media figure on how to brief the justice minister about the Chung Lien oil case, which involves a cancer-causing chemical found in the product.
• She also claims the official warned the minister to keep the ministry's role secret if he alerted the premier, and suggested the 20% recall threshold may have been set at the presidential level.
• The Justice Ministry called the accusations pure speculation, saying it never intervenes in individual cases and that Taichung prosecutors are working independently.
• No official has been charged or resigned over the contaminated oil, which is why the case keeps drawing political fire.

Outlook: Expect the opposition to press for a wider probe into political decision-makers while the ministry keeps pushing back on any suggestion of a cover-up.