PFP lawmaker Diane Lee (李慶安), ranked as one of the most hardworking legislators session after session, has come under intense pressure to quit her office.
Driven by self-righteousness and a hunger for the media spotlight, she mistakenly accused top health official Twu Shiing-jer (涂醒哲) of sexually harassing another man during a KTV party on Aug 6.
TAIPEI TIMES FILE PHOTO
The sensational allegation gripped the nation for days as Twu, acting head of the Department of Health (DOH), insisted he was innocent in one news conference after another. Meanwhile, Lee and the alleged victim, Cheng Ko-jung (鄭可榮), relentlessly demanded an apology from Twu.
Despite a lack of evidence, an overwhelming number of local Chinese-language newspapers and TV talk shows expressed sympathy for Cheng, the handsome owner of a dumpling stand.
The controversy took a dramatic turnabout on Oct 5 when Lee and Cheng, crestfallen and weary, bowed before TV cameras saying they had identified the wrong man. Just one night before, investigators had found that Twu was never at the KTV and that it was another DOH official with a similar surname -- Tu Hao-lin (屠豪麟), the department's personnel chief -- who was present at the party.
Critics have since pressed Lee to step down, calling her mistake unforgivable.
While apologetic, the two-term lawmaker has showed no intention of resigning, however.
"I will greet all criticism with a humble heart and engage in solemn soul-searching," Lee said. "In the future, I will try harder to fight for ordinary citizens who suffer injustice."
Though she struggles to appear unharmed, the political farce has seriously tainted her image as a justice fighter.
The uproar surfaced last month when the journalist-turned-politician was told by an aide that a ranking official had forcefully kissed Cheng and licked his ears during a party at a KTV in downtown Taipei.
Shocked, Lee paid a visit to the alleged victim and urged him to come forward and expose the official's misconduct.
"A man of such debase character should be booted from the government," the lawmaker reportedly told Cheng.
At Lee's advice, Cheng agreed to pen a petition letter detailing his encounter with a Mr. Twu/Tu, who a mutual acquaintance had described to him as "soon to be promoted to the leadership post" in the health department.
Cheng, who had never previously met Twu or Tu, took his harasser to be Twu.
Meanwhile, Ding Jui-feng (丁瑞豐), who had invited Cheng to the party, never corrected when Cheng and his wife referred to the health official as Twu Shiing-jer in later phone conversations.
Later, when Lee was making her own inquiries, both Ding and a couple that was also present at the party told her Twu was never at the KTV.
But since they failed to identify the man who harassed Cheng, Lee said she decided they had been "pressured to tell lies or keep quiet" and disregarded their statements.
She then went on to reject an offer by Twu to clarify the matter personally and accused Premier Yu Shyi-kun of seeking to cover up the scandal.
"Whoever tells lies should step down," the lawmaker angrily said on Oct. 3 when Twu showed up at a KTV room where she and Cheng recounted the alleged sexual harassment to the press.
Twu had roundly denied ever visiting any KTV polar in the last year and vowed to resign if it were proved otherwise. He challenged Lee to do the same and filed libel suits against her and Cheng.
The next evening when cable TV stations aired the image of Tu, Cheng conceded he is not good at recognizing people.
"After strenuous recollecting, Cheng concluded it is Tu, not Twu, who [harassed him] the other night," Lee told a news conference on Oct. 5.
She and Cheng then took a deep bow to show their regret for putting Twu and his family through the emotional ordeal.
The lawmaker attributed her bungle mainly to misleading information supplied by witnesses involved. Cheng, on the other hand, blamed Tu for failing to come forward and vindicate Twu earlier. Tired of media inquiries, he has closed down his dumpling shop.
"The store, which may seem insignificant to others, is all I have," Cheng said.
Tu was given a major demerit and switched to a non-supervisory position.
Lee, who has since doffed her grandstanding, is now facing a libel charge and possibly having to shell out NT$50 million in compensation.
The melodramatic debacle has substantially dimmed her political star, pundits said.
With a squeaky-clean image and high popularity, she had been widely considered a promising candidate for a Taipei mayoral run in 2006.
In April last year, her former independent colleague Lo Fu-chu (
"This time, Lee should volunteer to be punished to set an example," TSU lawmaker Lo Chih-ming (
Lee, 43, first entered politics in 1994 when she won a berth on Taipei City Council. Four years later, she joined the legislative race, winning a seat representing the capital city's southern district.
Some linked her electoral success to her national name recognition gained through working as a reporter and anchorwoman for Chinese Television System.
Others, however, ascribed her smooth career to her privileged background.
Lee's father, Lee Huan (李煥), once served as premier, education minister, senior presidential adviser, and KMT secretary-general, among his long list of credentials Her deceased mother Pan Hsiang-ning (潘香凝) was a former tenured National Assembly member.
In addition, Diane Lee's three siblings all have served in different government posts.
Four-term PFP Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華), 54, is one of Diane Lee's two brothers. He chaired the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee before launching his political career.
In Aug 1993, Lee Ching-hua co-founded the New Party with then-KMT lawmakers Jaw Shaw-kong (
The KMT splinter group is known for bashing former president Lee Teng-hui (
Just days before the 2000 presidential poll, Lee Ching-hua quit the New Party to back independent runner James Soong (
Lee Ching-chu (李慶珠), elder sister of Diane Lee, was a key staffer for the National Youth Commission and Overseas Chin-ese Affairs Commission in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Aggressive and overbearing, she was disliked by many colleagues.
Her thesis with which she passed the 1988 civil service exam was later found to be a piece of plagiarism and led to her downfall. The scandal was exposed by then-DPP legislator Chen Shui-bian (
Lee Ching-chung (
Before that, he worked for Department of National Treasury, Securities & Exchange Commission, Council for Economic Planning and Development, and Ministry of Economic Affairs.
In 1992 Lee Ching-chung quit the EPA after his boss Jaw Shaw-kong threw his hat into the legislative ring.
"I'd rather be a Taiwanese Hemingway than an environmental official," he said upon his resignation.
He has since become a freelance writer.
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
BETTER SERVICE QUALITY: From Nov. 10, tickets with reserved seats would only be valid for the date, train and route specified on the ticket, THSRC said Starting on Nov. 10, high-speed rail passengers with reserved seats would be required to exchange their tickets to board an earlier train. Passengers with reserved seats on a specific train are currently allowed to board earlier trains on the same day and sit in non-reserved cars, but as this is happening increasingly often, and affecting quality of travel and ticket sales, Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) announced that it would be canceling the policy on Nov. 10. It is one of several new measures launched by THSRC chairman Shih Che (史哲) to improve the quality of service, it said. The company also said