Ting Yi-ming (丁怡銘) has resigned as Executive Yuan spokesman after wrongly claiming that an award-winning beef noodle soup restaurant serves meat that contains ractopamine.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) late on Sunday approved Ting’s resignation with immediate effect, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Li Meng-yen (李孟諺) said yesterday.
Li has been assigned by Su to temporarily fill Ting’s post.
Photo: Chen Wei-tzu, Taipei Times
Ting said that he resigned to take responsibility for trouble caused by his comments last week.
Ting, at a news conference held following the Executive Yuan’s weekly meeting on Thursday, said that the winner in this year’s Taipei International Beef Noodle Festival uses imported US beef containing the leanness enhancer.
The restaurant quickly responded by posting on Facebook a copy of its SGS certification showing that no ractopamine residue was found in its beef.
Ting subsequently walked back the comments, apologized to the restaurant “for any trouble caused” and reiterated that any imported beef which meets Codex Alimentarius Commission standards is safe for consumption.
The statement was condemned by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), which accused Ting of spreading false information as a government spokesman and called on him to resign.
Separately yesterday, KMT Taipei City Councilor Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇), New Party Taipei City Councilor Ho Han-ting (侯漢廷) and KMT Taichung City Councilor Lo Ting-wei (羅廷瑋) filed charges against Ting at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office, accusing him of breaching the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法), which states that people who intentionally spread false information about food safety issues that incurs damage to the public or another person face a maximum prison term of three years or a fine of NT$1 million (US$34,710).
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