Many illegal structures of politicians from across the spectrum — from Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Chairman Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) of the Democratic Progressive Party to former Chinese National Party (KMT) legislator Yen Kuan-heng (顏寬恆) and former Kaohsiung mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) of the KMT — were built three or four decades after Taiwan’s democratization.
KMT Taipei City Councilor Lee Po-yi (李柏毅) has never said such buildings should be demolished. If he has, it would be interesting to see him provide evidence.
Why is Lee criticizing the “illegal” construction of Vice President William Lai’s (賴清德) family home, built during Lai’s childhood?
Lee’s comments betray an unconscionable double standard. If he cares so much about legal property, he should consider Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) 49 guesthouses — all illegal structures built on state land.
Does Lee want to play a game of chronological sophistry in looking past these contradictions? Or would he contend that not all “existing illegal structures” are built equal?
Illegally built villas, irrespective of their owners’ political affiliation, involve the abuse of power — something entirely different from a family home built on mining land by Lai’s father when Lai himself was a small child. Such homes were built by poor families trying to shelter themselves — a basic need for survival. The two are not even remotely comparable.
It is difficult to understand why so many people could be swept up in this nonsense. How can they keep mouthing off with so little regard for the truth, entirely devoid of shame or conscience?
Lee should be ashamed of his comments and for propagating lies. It is hard to see how he can continue to look voters in the eye after the rubbish he uttered.
Ten Len-phone is a retired radio host.
Translated by Chien Yan-ru
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
If you had a vision of the future where China did not dominate the global car industry, you can kiss those dreams goodbye. That is because US President Donald Trump’s promised 25 percent tariff on auto imports takes an ax to the only bits of the emerging electric vehicle (EV) supply chain that are not already dominated by Beijing. The biggest losers when the levies take effect this week would be Japan and South Korea. They account for one-third of the cars imported into the US, and as much as two-thirds of those imported from outside North America. (Mexico and Canada, while
The military is conducting its annual Han Kuang exercises in phases. The minister of national defense recently said that this year’s scenarios would simulate defending the nation against possible actions the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) might take in an invasion of Taiwan, making the threat of a speculated Chinese invasion in 2027 a heated agenda item again. That year, also referred to as the “Davidson window,” is named after then-US Indo-Pacific Command Admiral Philip Davidson, who in 2021 warned that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had instructed the PLA to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027. Xi in 2017
RSS