The People First Party (PFP) legislators who were accused of slander by the Presidential Office refused to apologize yesterday and tried to shift the focus of attention off themselves to the recent allegations about the government's overseas donations.
UFO Radio chairman Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康) was also unrepentant yesterday, saying he would take legal action if Presidential Office Secretary-General Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) did not apologize for calling him names within three days.
The Presidential Office yesterday pressed charges against PFP caucus whip Liu Wen-hsiung (劉文雄), Legislator Tsai Chung-han (蔡中涵) and Jaw for accusing President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) of giving US$1 million to former Panamanian president Mireya Moscoso as a birthday gift.
Liu said yesterday that he would "examine and reflect on the usage of settlement fee" to signify the US$ 1 million.
"But the real problem here is that the government uses secret budgets to provide financial aid to foreign governments and yet it still fails to gain diplomatic advantages. We should not shift the [media] focus to the lawsuit," Liu said.
Liu said that PFP colleagues had told him to refine his language, and so he would examine himself accordingly.
"But this is still more refined than Minister of Foreign Affairs Mark Chen's (陳唐山) talk of LP [lam pa]," Liu argued.
Liu said he had wanted to retaliate by suing Su for calling him a "rogue politician," but then PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) persuaded him not to.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus, meanwhile, gave its support to the Presidential Office's lawsuit. The caucus also demanded Soong make an apology or it might end negotiations with its PFP counterpart.
"Liu quoted information from the Chinese government and falsely accused President Chen," DPP caucus whip Lee Chun-yee (
"The PFP should immediately remove Liu from its legislators-at-large list and Soong should offer an apology, or we will consider closing all negotiations with the PFP," Lee said.
Liu is ranked No. 1 on the PFP legislators-at-large list for the next legislature.
Jaw also demanded Su apologize to him for calling him a "rogue media professional."
"I will decide on what action to take based on Su's response," Jaw said.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) supports peaceful unification with China, and President William Lai (賴清德) is “a bit naive” for being a “practical worker for Taiwanese independence,” former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said in an interview published yesterday. Asked about whether the KMT is on the same page as the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) on the issue of Taiwanese independence or unification with China, Ma told the Malaysian Chinese-language newspaper Sin Chew Daily that they are not. While the KMT supports peaceful unification and is against unification by force, the DPP opposes unification as such and
The annual Taipei Summer Festival, which starts today, is to tone down its fireworks displays, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said on Monday. Fireworks displays are to be held at the riverside site in Datong District’s (大同) Dadaocheng (大稻埕) area on four days at this year’s festival, with the first today, and then on Wednesday next week, July 31 and Aug. 10, the department said. There were eight displays last year, with the reduction aimed at minimizing inconvenience to local residents, it said. The first three shows, which are all on Wednesdays, are to last for five minutes, while the final
EYE ON MAYORS: The DPP would file a complaint with the Control Yuan against Ko and Chiang over their handling of reports of abuse at a preschool in the city The Taipei City Government’s belated response under Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and his predecessor, Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), to alleged child sex abuse at a kindergarten resulted in more children being victimized, two Taipei City Councilors said yesterday. A Taipei preschool teacher has been charged with sexually abusing six children from 2021 to last year at a school registered to his mother. Prosecutors are reportedly considering additional charges amid a wave of new accusations allegedly linking the suspect to 20 other abused children and the discovery at his residence of more than 600 sexually explicit videos featuring minors. The
FATAL ILLNESS: Untreated symptoms can rapidly worsen to complications such as high fever, seizures and loss of consciousness, and can be life-threatening, a doctor said Hospitals have been reporting dozens of people with heat-related illnesses every day over the past week, given continuous high daytime temperatures, so recognizing the early signs of heatstroke is crucial in preventing serious complications, a Taipei City Hospital emergency physician said. The Central Weather Administration yesterday issued a heat alert for 19 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures in New Taipei City, Miaoli County and Pingtung County likely to exceed 38°C, and temperatures in 12 cities and counties likely to exceed 36°C for three days straight. More than a dozen people were taken to hospitals for heat-related illnesses every day from