Lin Chih-chien (林智堅), the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) candidate for Taoyuan mayor, yesterday announced his withdrawal from the race after National Taiwan University (NTU) on Tuesday revoked his master’s degree over charges of plagiarism.
DPP Legislator Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬) is to run in his place.
The DPP’s Election Strategy Committee earlier yesterday convened an emergency meeting to discuss the election in November as controversy over the plagiarism charges continued, after which it held a news conference to confirm Lin’s withdrawal.
Photo: Liu Hsin-te, Taipei Times
Lin, a former Hsinchu mayor, made the decision after the university revoked his master’s degree on the recommendation of its academic ethics committee, which found that he had plagiarized the thesis of another graduate student, Yu Cheng-huang (余正煌).
At the news conference, Lin apologized for causing “social turmoil and anxiety” over the past few weeks, saying he would not like to see his “insufficient efforts and writing flaws” affect NTU and sow discord in society.
Public attacks over a personal issue have taken over space for discussing public issues, which is unfair to Taoyuan residents, as their needs have been ignored, he said.
The political achievements of Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) have been overlooked, because of the dispute over his thesis, he said, adding that he “would hate to see Taiwan stop moving forward” because of him.
He thanked President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Cheng Wen-tsan and DPP committee members for their understanding, and apologized to his supporters for letting them down, calling on them to support Cheng Yun-peng in the election.
Although he has dropped out of the race, Lin vowed to prove his innocence by seeking legal relief.
DPP Secretary-General Lin Hsi-yao (林錫耀) said the president, who is the DPP chairperson, expressed regret over Lin’s withdrawal and believes that he is innocent.
DPP committee members support Lin Chih-chien’s decision to fight for his innocence and would “quickly regroup and steer the election back to its path,” he said.
The members all agreed that Cheng Yun-peng, who was Lin Chih-chien’s campaign manager, could continue Cheng Wen-tsan’s good work and join the campaign immediately, as he is one of the most experienced legislators and understands Taoyuan well, he said.
Cheng Yun-peng said that the nomination “is an honor, but also a responsibility.”
During the time he worked on Lin Chih-chien’s campaign, he realized that Taiwan should take on more responsibility in today’s world so that Taoyuan and Hsinchu could move forward together, he said.
Legislators from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party called on Tsai to “come forward” and apologize for the scandal.
Additional reporting by Chung Li-hua
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
The Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency yesterday launched a gift box to market honey “certified by a Formosan black bear” in appreciation of a beekeeper’s amicable interaction with a honey-thieving bear. Beekeeper Chih Ming-chen (池明鎮) in January inspected his bee farm in Hualien County’s Jhuosi Township (卓溪) and found that more than 20 beehives had been destroyed and many hives were eaten, with bear droppings and paw prints near the destroyed hives, the agency said. Chih returned to the farm to move the remaining beehives away that evening when he encountered a Formosan black bear only 20m away, the agency said. The bear
HORROR STORIES: One victim recounted not realizing they had been stabbed and seeing people bleeding, while another recalled breaking down in tears after fleeing A man on Friday died after he tried to fight the knife-wielding suspect who went on a stabbing spree near two of Taipei’s busiest metro stations, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. The 57-year-old man, identified by his family name, Yu (余), encountered the suspect at Exit M7 of Taipei Main Station and immediately tried to stop him, but was fatally wounded and later died, Chiang said, calling the incident “heartbreaking.” Yu’s family would receive at least NT$5 million (US$158,584) in compensation through the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp’s (TRTC) insurance coverage, he said after convening an emergency security response meeting yesterday morning. National
RSS