Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) condemned Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) rival Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday for comments he made about Ma's special allowance case and demanded a retraction.
In an interview with a Kaohsiung radio station yesterday, Hsieh slammed Ma for paying for his dog's physical exam and his daughters' tuition fees with money from his special Taipei mayoral allowance and challenged the Taipei District Court's ruling that found Ma not guilty.
Ma spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) threatened to file a defamation lawsuit against Hsieh if he failed to clarify his remarks.
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Lo said the court had found Ma not guilty and the prosecutors had not indicted Ma over the money spent on his dog and his daughters.
"Ma was indicted over the part of the allowance that required no receipts and he did not use his special allowance to pay for his daughters' tuition fees," Lo said in a written statement.
He urged Hsieh not to make false accusations.
"President Chen [Shui-bian (陳水扁)] never carried out his promise. Can Hsieh?" he said.
Hsieh was cleared by prosecutors last Friday of allegations that he had misused his special mayoral allowance when he was Kaohsiung mayor.
Meanwhile, Hsieh's campaign announced yesterday that it would promote a new patriotic movement through a "Taiwan reform" camp.
Campaign officials said that starting Oct. 19, the campaign would sponsor youth camps in Taipei, Kaohsiung, Changhua and Hualien, inviting leaders in arts and letters, politics and economics to serve as teachers to share their experience in realizing their ideals and enriching Taiwanese culture.
They invited youths to build up the values of the nation and momentum for national reform.
Hsieh's office secretary-general Lee Ying-yuan (李應元), Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君), director of its youth department, Taipei City Councilor Yen Sheng-kuan (顏聖冠) and several young supporters joined in a promotional activity in front of Taipei 101 yesterday.
Additional reporting by CNA
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