Li Si-chuan's campaign office hits back at Su Chiao-hui's camp over 921 disaster victim controversy
The New Taipei City mayoral race has descended into mutual accusations over claims about reconstruction after the 921 earthquake, a defensive battle for the camp of Kuomintang candidate Li Si-chuan.
- Li came under fierce attack from the Democratic Progressive Party camp over a Facebook post laying out a timeline of the 921 earthquake.
- His campaign office produced photographs and records stating that in 2022 he was invited to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the reconstruction of disaster-affected homes at the "European Garden New Town" complex in Taishan District.
- The camp accused its opponents of distorting "Taishan" into "Xinzhuang," and also questioned the identity of a disaster victim who had come forward in support of Li.
- Spokesperson Pan Tsai-hsuan demanded that Su Chiao-hui stop the attacks and apologise to the disaster victim, criticising the toleration of such tactics as "utterly cold-blooded."
Outlook: Neither side is likely to back down in the near term, and the dispute over credit for 921 reconstruction may well remain a central line of attack in the New Taipei race.