Politicians Must Meet Higher Standards, Says Candidate Amid Rival's Bullying Controversy
Translated from Chinese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
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- Taoyuan City Councilor candidate Shen Pei-ling criticized a local village chief's defense of a political rival accused of bullying.
- The village chief's remarks, suggesting that gambling and playing cards are common among politicians, were deemed insulting to hardworking citizens.
- Shen emphasized that politicians should be held to a higher standard and that defending wrongdoing by claiming "everyone does it" is unacceptable.
Shen Pei-ling, a city council candidate in Taoyuan City, has strongly criticized a village chief's defense of a political rival facing multiple bullying accusations.
The standard for politicians must be higher.
The rival, KMT Taoyuan City Councilor candidate Si Guang-yang, admitted to some bullying behaviors and involvement in illegal gambling during his high school years. Following this, village chief Jian Shi-qiang defended Si by suggesting that gambling and playing cards are common activities for politicians. Shen Pei-ling argued that such remarks are deeply insulting to citizens who live their lives honestly.
"The standard for politicians must be higher," Shen stated. She believes that defending illegal activities by normalizing them, as Jian Shi-qiang did by saying "who hasn't gambled?" (referring to illegal lotteries), is an insult to every diligent citizen. Shen contends that such justifications merely serve to defend outdated political culture.
who hasn't gambled? (referring to illegal lotteries)
Shen Pei-ling stressed that the public entrusts politicians with the power to decide on public resources and budget allocation. Therefore, she argued, the scrutiny applied to politicians must inherently be higher than that for ordinary citizens. She asserted that Si Guang-yang should apologize for his admitted wrongdoings and clarify any false accusations, rather than resorting to the "everyone is the same" defense, which she described as the worst form of protection.
The public entrusts politicians with the power to decide on public resources and budget allocation.
DistantNews Editorial
Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.
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