Legislator says he will jump into the ocean as promised

Defeated Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wang Shih-cheng (王世堅) said yesterday he would stick to his pre-election promise and jump into the ocean on an auspicious day of his choosing.

However, he also said the media were biased against him and had failed to deliver balanced reporting in his district prior to the legislative elections on Saturday.

Wang ran for legislator in Taipei's second district (Shilin and Datong), and lost to Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rival Justin Chou (周守訓) by more than 10,000 votes.

Prior to the elections, Wang told the media that if the KMT won all eight of Taipei City's legislative districts, he would jump into the ocean.

Together with Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康), Wang was one of two DPP Taipei district candidates considered most likely to prevent the KMT attaining a goal it dubbed "Sending Eight Immortals Across the Ocean."

"The media are unfairly highlighting my promise while not writing a word about Chou sending cellphone text messages to our district voters prior to the election," Wang said. "If I had lost without any `dirty tricks,' I would have gladly accepted my defeat."

Saying the media were guilty of kicking a man while he was down, Wang said: "However, I will keep my word and jump into the ocean. I will choose an auspicious day [according to the lunar calendar] to do it."

While the media surrounded Wang's campaign headquarters asking him when he would carry out his promise, some of Wang's supporters encouraged him to persevere.

"If you jump into the ocean, I'll jump with you," one supporter said. "It is nothing to be afraid of."

In response to Wang's accusations, Chou later told the media that while he realized that Wang's feelings were hurt, Wang should refrain from accusing him of something he had not done.

Meanwhile, a DPP caucus whip said yesterday that the party needed to engage in serious soul-searching after its trouncing in Saturday's legislative elections.

Wang Tuoh (王拓) said the defeat showed that the public wanted to teach the DPP a lesson, because its performance over the past eight years "has not lived up to expectations."

He said that although the party had expected a defeat, it was really caught off-guard by the KMT winning more than two-thirds of the seats.

"With the KMT becoming a `super party' in the legislature, it will be able to do whatever it likes," Wang said. "[The DPP] must accept most of the responsibility for the future course of the nation, although the public should also share responsibility, as they made their decisions in the elections."

Additional reporting by CNA