Taipei mayor's meeting absences spark political spat

Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an faces criticism for his low attendance at food safety meetings, with Social Democratic Party councilor Miao Poya revealing he has missed 73% of the sessions he is supposed to convene.

Chiang, as the convenor of Taipei's food safety meetings, has been under scrutiny following a recent food poisoning incident linked to the Bao-Li restaurant, which affected 173 people. Miao Poya highlighted Chiang's absence rate as a significant concern for public health oversight.

In defense of the mayor, Kuomintang Councilor Yu Shu-hui argued on Facebook that Chiang's situation is not unique. She pointed to Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai, who has reportedly attended only one food safety meeting convened by him since 2023, with others often led by lower-ranking officials. Yu also recalled that former Premier Su Tseng-chang's administration failed to convene the Executive Yuan's food safety committee for over a year.

Yu's defense, however, backfired among some netizens. Critics accused her of hypocrisy and "managing too broadly" by commenting on Kaohsiung's affairs while serving as a Taipei councilor. The Bao-Li restaurant incident, which resulted in fatalities, was also brought up, with critics questioning the mayor's commitment to food safety oversight.

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You are so lucky to be a councilor in Taipei, and Taipei is currently governed by the KMT. Otherwise, facing the meeting attitudes of Chen Chi-mai and Su Tseng-chang, if Ah Miao were under someone else's roof, she couldn't criticize or get angry. She could only selectively supervise, and would truly be suffocated and angered to death. Because green is the color of forgiveness, green is the color of mutual protection, and green is the color that cannot be criticized.