Tempers flared at a Kaohsiung City Council meeting yesterday, with Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) trading accusations with city councilors over whose pay was higher.
But the spat didn't end there. Tensions escalated after City Council Speaker Huang Chi-chuan (
The mayor refused and said that if he was forced to leave, he would lead a walkout and take other high-ranking officials with him.
The council session had begun like any other. Hsieh appeared at the meeting to answer the council's questions about city affairs, as he's required to do by law.
But when the questions turned to the issue of compensation for city officials, heated accusations began fly.
Hsieh, in responding to a question, said it was city councilors who were paid the most -- not the mayor.
But councilors Chu Wen-ching (朱文慶), Liu Shao-chun (劉少春) and Dai Te-min (戴德銘) disagreed, questioning the mayor's math.
In a debate that lasted more than 40 minutes, council members argued that Hsieh's principal salary of NT$179,000 added to a special fund of NT$340,000 allotted to the mayor came to NT$519,000 in monthly compensation.
Council members, on the other hand, earn NT$410,000 a month -- of which roughly NT$110,000 is base salary, NT$240,000 is allotted to cover the salaries of six assistants and the remaining NT$60,000 is slated for other expenses.
But Hsieh said that according to his calculations, council members earned more than the mayor.
The mayor said that half of the special fund goes toward a school lunch program and an organization for people with disabilities. The remainder is for administrative expenses.
Liu criticized Hsieh for being stubborn and said the mayor should admit that he was wrong.
Huang then ordered Hsieh to leave the session.
At an impromptu press conference immediately following the blow-up, Hsieh said that Huang's order was illegal and disrespectful to the office of the mayor.
Hsieh also said that it was unreasonable for Huang to "chase" him out of the meeting when he -- along with other high-ranking city officials -- had attended the session to answer councilors' questions in accordance with the law.
Huang also held an impromptu press conference to give his version of the event.
The city council speaker said he had asked Hsieh to leave the session temporarily because the mayor had shown "no sincerity" in answering the council's questions.
In addition, Huang said Hsieh's defiance of the order and threats to lead a walk-out were acts of disrespect toward the council.
Both Hsieh and Huang said they would present the case to the Cabinet for further review.
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