Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said yesterday that first lady Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) was in very poor health on Wednesday, the day the president announced that he would delegate some of his responsibilities.
"[Wu] was in a critical condition on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, with her systolic pressure going down to 40. [President Chen Shui-bian (
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) confirmed the news, saying that Wu's life might have been in danger.
Wang said he learned of the first lady's condition during his meeting with the president on Thursday afternoon.
"I was summoned to meet the president because I am the legislative speaker. His mood seemed fine, but it was obvious that he was a bit depressed about the recent problems that have beset the first family," Wang said.
Wang said that although the first lady's physical condition is deteriorating, she remains more concerned about her daughter Chen Hsing-yu (
Wang pointed out that the two children had no idea about what had happened to their father [Chao Chien-ming (
Chao was detained on May 26 on suspicion of insider trading.
Su said the first family was facing an unprecedented crisis and appealed to the public to "give Wu and pregnant Chen Hsing-yu some peace."
The president said while on a state visit to Costa Rica on May 8 that Wu had been in poor health due to a spate of scandals that had rocked the first family, as a result of which Wu had canceled her plans to attend their son Chen Chih-chung's (
The president said Wu had told him several times that her life was worse than being dead.
"I don't know how much longer she will live -- God hasn't told me. I hope to be her personal nurse after leaving office in 2008," Chen said.
Wu has been confined to a wheelchair since November 1985, when she was knocked down and run over three times by a three-wheeled truck, shortly after Chen lost the Tainan County commissioner election.
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