Presidential Office spokeswoman Kolas Yotaka yesterday resigned from her post following a media report that she was allegedly having an affair with a married man.
The man, a police officer surnamed Lee (李), had been assigned to Kolas’ security detail while she was running for Hualien County commissioner during last year’s local elections, the Chinese-language Mirror Media reported.
Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) said it was a “personal matter for Kolas.”
Photo: Wang Chin-yi, Taipei Times
“While the office hopes it will be handled properly, it has no further comment on the matter,” Lin said.
Kolas has submitted her resignation, which was approved by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), she added.
Mirror Media reported that after Kolas returned to Taipei to work as Presidential Office spokeswoman, she maintained a rental property in Hualien County and frequently stayed there with Lee.
The report said that Lee’s wife has filed a civil lawsuit against Kolas seeking NT$1 million (US$32,183) in damages.
Kolas and Lee yesterday apologized in separate Facebook posts, saying they had “never overstepped any boundaries, nor engaged in intimate behavior together.”
“The media report exaggerated many things. I didn’t know Lee’s marital status, and we never engaged in intimacy. I have no contact with Lee now,” Kolas wrote.
“I would like to apologize to any of Lee’s family members who have been affected [by these allegations]. I believe the facts will be clarified,” she wrote.
Lee said that he had told his wife that he wanted a divorce, which she agreed to, but that divorce procedures dragged on without progress.
He had not told Kolas that he was married, Lee said.
“I only sought conversation with Kolas and we were never intimate,” he wrote.
“I am deeply sorry. I apologize to those I have hurt,” he added.
However, Lee’s wife on Facebook said she had screenshots of Line text messages between Kolas and Lee showing that the two had sexual intercourse.
“Kolas knew from the very beginning that my husband was married, but she still disregarded ethics and morals and destroyed my family without any sense of guilt,” she wrote.
“My husband used to be a happy, family-oriented person, but because of Kolas, he has completely changed,” she added.
The Hualien County Police Department, where Lee is employed, said that it would conduct an internal investigation into the allegations.
Lee has headed Yuemei Police Station in Hualien County’s Shoufeng Township (壽豐) since May 30.
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
EVA Airways, one of the leading international carriers in Taiwan, yesterday said that it was investigating reports that a cabin crew manager had ignored the condition of a sick flight attendant, who died on Saturday. The airline made the statement in response to a post circulating on social media that said that the flight attendant on an outbound flight was feeling sick and notified the cabin crew manager. Although the flight attendant grew increasingly ill on the return flight, the manager did not contact Medlink — a system that connects the aircraft to doctors on the ground for treatment advice during medical
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
RSS