Print

Mail

wiki links

Taipei deputy mayor slaps councilor with slander suit

Fighting against an accusation of alleged corruption and cronyism, Taipei Deputy Mayor King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) said that he filed a civil lawsuit last month against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) City Councilor Lan Shih-tsung (藍世聰) for slandering him.

The lawsuit, which was also brought against Chen Huei-ming (陳輝銘), the manager of the Hannover Equestrian Club, marked the first civil case city officials have ever filed against a city councilor.

King has been accused by Lan and Chen of accepting free horse-riding lessons at the Hannover Equestrian Club, paid for by a man he later appointed to the city government.

King ordered the equestrian club to be torn down in April for violating the Taipei City Land Use Development Regulations (台北市土地使用分區管制規定).

King acknowledged accepting free lessons from Hsieh Ping-Han (謝屏翰) at the club between 1993 and 1994, but denied any collaboration with Hsieh.

King said that the whole issue is a ploy by the club and Lan aimed at tarnishing his name because they are angry at the government's decision to tear down the building.

He said that he decided to file a civil lawsuit against both because his integrity "cannot be questioned."

King asked for NT$1 million in damages and an apology to be published in a newspaper if he wins the case.

Lan condemned King for avoiding the supervision of a city councilor through a civil lawsuit, and pledged a countersuit against King for having brought a false charge against him.

"King was wrong for accepting free horse-rides and pursuing private profit at the expense of the public interest. And now he has set another bad example by filing a civil lawsuit against a city councilor and trying to ignore te city council's supervision," Lan said.
This story has been viewed 1831 times.