Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) said yesterday that the Legislative Yuan should pass a statute governing stolen party assets as soon as possible, and that he was ready to testify on the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) assets if necessary.
"I never took any money from the KMT, but some people still say that I was a thief, and I get really angry about that," he said.
Lee said that he only received NT$5,000 a month when he was a member of the KMT Central Standing Committee, but that when he became party chairman, he stopped receiving money from the party altogether.
Lee was speaking as he stumped for Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) legislative candidate David Huang (黃適卓) yesterday.
"I never took any money from the party. Some people used money but have blamed the loss of that money on me because they're feeling guilty," he said.
Lee also talked about the arms deal with the US that has been blocked in the legislature, saying the new weapons were necessary to defend Taiwan against China.
"But the former chief of the Navy [People First Party Legislator Nelson Ku,
Lee also said that although President Chen Shui-bian (
And compared with the US, where losing candidates congratulate winning candidates "on the spot," Lee said Taiwan had losing candidates who would never concede and who have been causing trouble for eight months since the presidential election.
"Some leaders wouldn't concede even if they lost three or four times -- they still think their destiny is to become president," Lee said.
"They even said the March 19 shooting was planned by A-bian [Chen] himself. These kinds of leaders should be eliminated," he said.
Lee campaigned later yesterday for TSU caucus whip Chen Chien-ming (陳建銘). There he said that the nation was facing two challenges.
"One is how to erase the residue of the authoritarian regime of Chiang Kai-shek (
Lee said that Taiwan had not managed to eradicate the authoritarian regime entirely, and that this domestic issue had to be dealt with first before Taiwan could deal with international matters.
"Those who still think that the party equals the nation and consider themselves to be the only legitimate candidates for the presidency will only have things done their way," Lee said. "Those without the destiny to become president should stop fantasizing about it."
Lee then alleged he had received threats.
"Actually, I am surrounded by a lot of bodyguards today. Some people have been threatening to kill me. But I am not scared of this kind of thing," he said.
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY: Taiwan shares the same values as those that fought in WWII, and nations must unite to halt the expansion of a new authoritarian bloc, Lai said The government yesterday held a commemoration ceremony for Victory in Europe (V-E) Day, joining the rest of the world for the first time to mark the anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. Taiwan honoring V-E Day signifies “our growing connections with the international community,” President William Lai (賴清德) said at a reception in Taipei on the 80th anniversary of V-E Day. One of the major lessons of World War II is that “authoritarianism and aggression lead only to slaughter, tragedy and greater inequality,” Lai said. Even more importantly, the war also taught people that “those who cherish peace cannot
STEADFAST FRIEND: The bills encourage increased Taiwan-US engagement and address China’s distortion of UN Resolution 2758 to isolate Taiwan internationally The Presidential Office yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for unanimously passing two Taiwan-related bills highlighting its solid support for Taiwan’s democracy and global participation, and for deepening bilateral relations. One of the bills, the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, requires the US Department of State to periodically review its guidelines for engagement with Taiwan, and report to the US Congress on the guidelines and plans to lift self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement. The other bill is the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, which clarifies that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the issue of the representation of Taiwan or its people in
The Philippines yesterday criticized a “high-risk” maneuver by a Chinese vessel near the disputed Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島) in a rare incident involving warships from the two navies. The Scarborough Shoal — a triangular chain of reefs and rocks in the contested South China Sea — has been a flash point between the countries since China seized it from the Philippines in 2012. Taiwan also claims the shoal. Monday’s encounter took place approximately 11.8 nautical miles (22km) southeast” of the Scarborough Shoal, the Philippine military said, during ongoing US-Philippine military exercises that Beijing has criticized as destabilizing. “The Chinese frigate BN 554 was
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
RSS