Chinese Nationalist Party KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) yesterday morning apologized for referring to Presidential Office Secretary-General Chen Chu (陳菊) as “a fat sow” and said that although he made an inappropriate comment on Saturday, he longs for clean and honest elections.
Wu made the remark about the former Kaohsiung mayor during an event for KMT Kaohsiung mayoral candidate Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜).
It was a “non-public event with about 10 or 20 people,” the former vice president and premier, who also served as Kaohsiung mayor from 1990 to 1998, said yesterday.
Photo: CNA
Wu said that he was an old friend of former Examination Yuan member Huang Chun-ying (黃俊英) and that several people at Saturday’s event had come from Huang’s hometown.
He and some of them got emotional when the subject turned to the Kaohsiung mayoral election 12 years ago, when Huang was a candidate, he said.
Huang lost the election due to false rumors of bribery and remained deeply troubled by the allegations until he died, Wu said.
His comment about Chen was “inappropriate,” whether as an “indirect reference to her or description about her,” Wu said as he bowed in front of photographers to Chen and others hurt by his remark.
He asked KMT Vice Secretary-General Cheng Li-wen (鄭麗文) on Saturday to apologize to the public on his behalf, Wu said.
The most important thing is to ensure elections are “clean, honest” and “free of unethical moves,” he said, adding that this is what he deeply longs for and has always believed in throughout his decades-long political career.
Han is also against unethical election efforts, Wu said, referring to Han’s remarks at an event on Saturday that he would rather “lose the election while keeping his integrity than win by cheating.”
There was no need for Han to join him in an apology, because the inappropriate comment was his alone, Wu added.
Asked if his remark could hurt the KMT’s campaign, Wu said it would not, adding that he had apologized for what needed an apology.
Asked why he had not immediately apologized on Saturday, Wu said the first reports on his remark said it was an “insinuation.”
Whether it was a direct comment on Chen was irrelevant to the fact that it was inappropriate, he said.
Wu’s Facebook account was flooded by Han’s supporters demanding that he take responsibility for his remark, and Wu said that he respects their opinions.
He reiterated that he had “apologized for what needed an apology and would insist on what needs to be insisted on.”
At a Democratic Progressive Party rally in Kaohsiung last night, Chen made her first comment on the issue, telling the crowd: “I am a daughter of Taiwanese, I am not a big sow.”
BUSY DAY: The same day the USS ‘Barry’ passed through the Strait, Taiwan was ending its Han Kuang military exercises, while China said it conducted an exercise near Taiwan A US Navy ship on Friday sailed through the Taiwan Strait, marking the ninth time a US military vessel has transited the Strait since US President Joe Biden took office in January. The USS Barry, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, conducted a “routine” transit through the Strait, the US Navy said in a statement, adding that the journey through international waters was conducted “in accordance with international law.” “The ship’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the US Navy said. “The United States military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows.” The Ministry
FRUIT SPAT: The COA said China had not given evidence for halting wax and custard apple imports, adding that it would spend NT$1bn on promoting sales of the fruit Taipei threatened to take China to the WTO yesterday after Beijing said it would suspend wax apple and custard apple imports from Taiwan due to pest concerns. China’s customs administration earlier yesterday said it had repeatedly found pests called Planococcus minor, a type of mealybug, on wax and custard apples from Taiwan. It asked its Guangdong branch and all affiliated offices to stop clearing the products from today. China had acted unilaterally, without providing scientific evidence, Council of Agriculture (COA) Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) told a news conference, criticizing the announcement’s timing, as it came during the Mid-Autumn Festival, celebrated in Taiwan
ON ALERT: A woman who tested positive for COVID-19 while abroad last year tested negative twice in Taiwan before showing a positive result on Sunday, the center said The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported two locally transmitted COVID-19 infections, four imported cases and no deaths. The CECC meanwhile warned nearly 500 people to monitor their health after a woman tested postive. The center also reported that a previous local case — a female worker at Taoyuan International Airport Services (桃園航勤), who had the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 — likely contracted the disease from the same source as a previous imported case from Turkey. Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said that the two local cases were reported in Taipei, and are a
CLOSED DOORS? The new US rules, which are to be implemented in November, have sparked concern in Taiwan, given its low fully vaccinated coverage rate The US plans to allow entry to most foreign air travelers as long as they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 — while adding a testing requirement for unvaccinated Americans and barring entry for foreigners who have not received shots. The measures announced on Monday by the White House mark the most sweeping change to US travel policies in months, and widen the gap in rules between vaccinated people — who would see restrictions relaxed — and unvaccinated people. The new rules would replace existing bans on foreigners’ travel to the US from certain regions, including Europe. While the move would open the
RSS