In an abrupt reversal, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) yesterday admitted that she was at home on the afternoon when Typhoon Fanapi hit southern Taiwan on Sept. 19, leaving a large swath of the city under water.
Facing a spate of questions from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) city councilors at the Kaohsiung City Council yesterday afternoon regarding her whereabouts from 2pm to 5pm on that day, Chen admitted that she was at her residence, reversing previous claims by her administration that she had been out on an inspection tour.
“Yes, thanks,” Chen said in response to Lin Kuo-cheng (林國正), a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) city councilor, who had asked her: “Being a city mayor is a temporary thing, but having political integrity or not is a lifetime matter. Did you sleep? Please answer. Did you take a rest [that afternoon]?”
PHOTO: CNA
Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Lee Yung-te (李永得) said he was also asleep at his residence during the period, while Lin Jen-yi (林仁益), another deputy mayor, said he was at home for one-and-a-half-hours in the afternoon.
Chen Hung-lung (陳虹龍), the head of the city’s Fire Bureau, was in charge of the emergency operation center at the time.
Asked by Lin, Chen Hung-lung said he stayed at the center all afternoon coordinating relief efforts and did not report back to Chen Chu during the period.
Kaohsiung City was one of the cities and counties hardest hit by the typhoon, with more than 1,700 households and 600 vehicles in four of its 11 districts inundated.
The clear frontrunner in the Greater Kaohsiung mayoral election scheduled for Nov. 27 against KMT rival Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順) and Kaohsiung County Commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興), who withdrew from the DPP to run as an independent, Chen Chu is now in the political cross-hairs for her city’s management during the storm.
One of the main critiques was the allegation made on Sept. 24 by KMT City Councilor Wang Ling-chiao (王齡嬌) that Chen Chu went on a campaign trip around Gangshan Township (岡山), Kaohsiung County, from 2pm to 5pm as the typhoon was buffeting the city.
Chen Chu had responded by saying that she was in Kaohsiung City.
In a press conference yesterday morning, Lee said the city government would provide evidence to rebut the allegation made by Wang.
Chen Chu’s vehicle was spotted in footage recorded by a monitoring device driving back to her residence at 2:30pm and leaving the house at 4:52pm.
Lee said Chen Chu went out to inspect the downtown parts of the city at 1:20pm after having lunch and inspected the intersection of Chengcing Road and Yihua Road after 4:52pm before heading back to the emergency operations center at 6:30pm.
In a briefing to the city council on the city government’s handling of the storm earlier yesterday, Chen Chu said that regardless of whether she was in the emergency operation center, at her residence or inspecting the city, she did not “forsake her duty.”
She said she would shoulder full responsibility for the city government and the emergency operation center’s operations.
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