Tue, Oct 12, 2010 page3

• Taipei mayor announces counterattack

  PR TEAM Embattled Hau Lung-bin announced a nine-member team of spokespeople to fight back against claims that he was involved in a series of overpayment scandals

  • By Ko Shu-ling / Staff Reporter
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  With less than two months to go before the special municipality elections, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday introduced a nine-member spokesperson team, saying they were ready to launch an all-out counterattack against Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) opponent.

  In recent months, Hau said, he had been on the defensive, which was not a good campaign strategy.

  “Now I have my friends from the legislature who can respond immediately to the attacks and smear campaigns launched by the DPP,” he said. “Su must have left a trail in every public office he held over the years. With the help of my -spokespeople, I am certain I will win this election.”

  

  Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin, second left, thanks Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) -legislators for forming a team of spokespeople for his re-election campaign, at a press -conference in Taipei yesterday.

  Photo: CNA

  Hau made the remarks while introducing the team at his campaign headquarters. The team is composed of six Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators from Taipei City, two of whom are legislators-at-large. The other three are KMT legislators from Taipei County, soon to be renamed Sinbei City.

  Hau said the reason he had asked Sinbei City legislators to join his campaign was that they were well aware of Su’s performance when he was Taipei County commissioner.

  KMT Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) said Hau could no longer afford to be on the defensive.

  As Su was twice elected Taipei County commissioner and was also appointed premier, this required a lot of scrutiny, Lin said.

  Describing himself as someone who knew more about getting things done than promoting his achievements, Hau said he needed someone who could tell Taipei residents about his achievements in the past four years.

  While KMT legislators Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) and Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) also serve on the campaign team of the KMT’s candidate for Sinbei City, Eric Chu (朱立倫), they said they did not think their new jobs would affect their obligations to Chu.

  In response, Su said he was impressed by the KMT’s “old tricks,” saying he would not follow suit and that the public was already disgusted by mudslinging.

  “Listening to what the people have to say is more important than telling them what the candidates want to say,” Su said. “Besides, since Hau is running for re-election, the focus should be on his performance over the past four years. As for my eight years as Taipei County commissioner, voters have already made their judgment.”

  On plans for a televised debate, which foundered last week, KMT Legislator Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) urged Su to refrain from hiding “behind the skirt” of DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and recent comments by DPP Secretary--General Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁), who, in reference to the KMT’s favoring media managers to ask questions during a debate, said that only “losers favor group fights.”

  The KMT said Wu’s remarks were offensive to the media.

  Hau yesterday urged Su to refrain from shunning the scrutiny of the media and Taipei residents, adding that media representatives had been invited to participate in previous debates and that his camp was simply requesting that the same format be adopted.

  Su said Cheng’s comments were “inappropriate,” adding that it was Hau who had backtracked on a consensus reached by the two parties over the debate and that the flip-flop was intentional.
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