People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) has declared he will run for mayor of Taipei. It has been reported that he will register as a "non-partisan" candidate. This is a dishonest and risky move.
When registering to run for a public office, a candidate must be honest. Soong is the founder and chairman of the PFP. How can he leave omit his political affiliation? He can do so only if he resigns from the PFP.
Soong hopes to gain more support from non-partisan voters. But falsifying one's political affiliation is as guilty as falsifying educational and/or work experience. If Soong is elected, he would face the risk of being impeached or recalled because of his dishonesty in his resume. Taipei residents do not want to see red-shirt army type noisy protests against him.
Soong has suggested that "Taipei should not continue to be a little daughter-in-law of the central government." His powers of observation are not very good. Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has treated President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) more like his defeated mayoral rival than a president. Does a daughter-in-law have that kind of attitude towards her husband's parents?
Soong has come up with the slogan, "Taiwan breaks through siege, and Taipei proceeds first." In Taiwanese, "proceeds first" can also mean "dies first."
Charles Hong
Columbus, Ohio
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