Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) yesterday visited Taipei City Council to share his experiences of city development as a former Taipei mayor and lauded Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) for his efforts to improve the water quality in the Tamsui River, among other municipal developments.
Lee, who served as Taipei mayor from 1978 to 1981, made a speech on city management after an invitation from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City caucus.
Hau, of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), accompanied Lee to the council and listened to his speech.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Lee spent more than an hour discussing his previous efforts to promote urban planning and address the needs of the city’s population during his three-year term as Taipei mayor.
He downplayed criticisms by some DPP Taipei City councilors of Hau’s performance and said municipal development should be continuous, with each mayor implementing new policies to make Taipei a better city.
However, Lee criticized President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who also served as Taipei mayor, for creating an ethnic divide by describing himself as a “New Taiwanese.”
He also urged the KMT and DPP to join forces in addressing the economic crisis and other issues that concern the public.
“There are many ethnic groups in Taiwan and it’s crucial to know that making Taiwanese happy should be our only goal ... It is important for Taiwan to develop peacefully, and more importantly the DPP and KMT should stop bickering and work together to address issues that affect the public,” he said.
Hau expressed gratitude to Lee for his visit to the council and for sharing his experiences as Taipei mayor, dismissing concerns about any conflicts between himself and the pro-independence leader.
“Every Taipei mayor made great contributions to the city and we thank former mayor Lee for sharing his experiences. As a former mayor, he understands what Taipei needs and has given us great advice on the future development of the city,” Hau said.
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