Tens of thousands of Filipinos have come to Taiwan to find work because their parents voted for a president who ruined their nation's economy, President Lee Teng-hui (
Lee warned Taiwanese voters that if they didn't support the KMT's presidential candidate in the March 18 election, Taiwan could become a poor nation like the Philippines.
``If our vision is not clear and we make the wrong choice, the problem could be serious,'' Lee said at a rally for Vice President Lien Chan (
While Lee did not name the president he blamed for ruining the Philippines economy, Lien's campaign has likened the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who embezzled large sums of public money, to independent candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜).
This is not the first time the Philippines or Marcos have been used as a campaign foil.
The Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in the Philippines delivered a protest letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs last September over similar comments made by both Lien and Soong.
Eva Estrada Kalaw, MECO's chairman of the board, told the Taipei Times that while Lee's comments were inappropriate, MECO has no plans to issue another formal protest.
"I think we cannot comment on the fault or merit of a deceased man," Estrada said. "I think it's quite inappropriate for anyone [to make such comment] and I'm not referring specifically to President Lee."
Estrada said MECO will not issue a formal letter of protest because "it is not pertinent to my work."
"These are comments on a past president and I'm working with the current president," she said.
The KMT has accused Soong of transferring large amounts of funds from KMT party coffers to his family's accounts while he was party secretary-general in the 1990s. Soong, who many polls say is leading the field in the run-up to the March 18 election, was formally ousted from the KMT recently for challenging Lien's candidacy.
Lee said yesterday that he has noticed that large crowds of Filipinos worship each Sunday at a Roman Catholic church in Taipei.
``Why are they worshiping here? Because if their parents chose the right president, they wouldn't have to come here to work,'' said Lee, who noted that there are some 118,000 Filipino workers in the country.
Soong has said he never embezzled money, and his campaign has argued that Lien has much in common with Marcos, because both married beauty queens.
Lien's wife, Lien Fang-yu (連方瑀), is a former ``Miss Republic of China;'' Marcos' wife, Imelda, once held her country's beauty title.
In the same speech, Lee admitted that it is not right to criticize a foreign country.
"A head of state should not criticize other countries like this. It is embarrassing and not the right thing to do," Lee said. "But if this example is not referred to, people would not understand the serious consequences of making a wrong choice in an election."
In the past year, Taipei-Manila relations have been tense.
Basketball teams from both nations have scuffled on court, while some Filipino workers have rioted and have complained about working conditions at Taiwanese factories.
Direct flights between Taipei and Manila were suspended for four months over an air dispute but resumed this month.
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