Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials stepped in yesterday in an attempt to calm a potentially embarrassing row between two of the party's contenders in the year-end special municipality elections.
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) called on both Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) and Kaohsiung County Commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興) to play fair and compete in a way that does not harm party interests.
In the meantime, the party plans to ensure better communication between the two, Tsai said.
Chen and Yang are competing for the DPP's nomination for December's Greater Kaohsiung elections, which will see Kaohsiung City and Kaohsiung County merged into a special municipality.
The spat began on Friday after Yang called a press conference alleging that Chen had him placed under surveillance during his campaign stops in Kaohsiung City. Comparing Chen's tactics to the White Terror era, Yang accused Chen of “poisoning” their friendship.
“Borough leaders that supported me had their houses torn down, while doctors that were with me had their licenses suspended. How can such a thing happen?” Yang said at the time. “How come even when [I] went mountain climbing ... the police were collecting evidence, I am not a suspect; this is getting ridiculous.”
In photographs handed out by Yang's campaign office, a uniformed police officer is seen taking pictures of Yang during a media interview at Kaohsiung's Shoushan.
Chen has denied the accusations, saying such actions run counter to her reputation as a freedom fighter during the White Terror period.
“I was imprisoned [during the period]. My administration will not undertake actions that I myself personally abhor,” Chen said.
She called on Yang to provide evidence supporting his allegations.
Kaohsiung police have said that the photograph of Yang was taken by a policeman surnamed Hong during a routine patrol of Shoushan. Authorities said Hong passed by Yang during a media interview and took a picture as part of his normal duties, denying it was a case of evidence collection or used for any other purpose.
The DPP's nine-member nomination team, charged with monitoring party nominees, plans to discuss the situation with Chen and Yang separately next week. In the meantime, the two candidates should exercise restraint so as to avoid further tarnishing the party's image, team member Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said.
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