Taipei Public Works Slams Candidate Shen Po-yang; Critic Says Mayor Chiang Pushes Staff Overtime for Elections

Taipei's Public Works Department fired back at a political candidate on Sunday evening, accusing him of spreading misinformation about the city's "Taipei Grand Trail" project. The department specifically addressed comments made by Democratic Progressive Party mayoral candidate Shen Po-yang, who questioned the progress and transportation planning under the current administration.

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Chiang Wan-an is incompetent and only pushes grassroots civil servants to work overtime to fight election campaigns.

The department's late-night statement, issued at 7:55 PM, criticized Shen for denying he proposed building a new trail. It quoted Shen from June 6th: "If you truly care about Taipei's trails... what people are really looking at now is not the Grand Trail, but the skyline of Greater Taipei. There will be breakpoints between the way the skyline is walked and the way the Grand Trail is walked."

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If you truly care about Taipei's trails... what people are really looking at now is not the Grand Trail, but the skyline of Greater Taipei. There will be breakpoints between the way the skyline is walked and the way the Grand Trail is walked.

Political commentator Chou Hsuan criticized Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an, stating, "Chiang Wan-an is incompetent and only pushes grassroots civil servants to work overtime to fight election campaigns." Chou questioned why Chiang himself didn't respond, suggesting the Public Works Department's statement sounded like a campaign surrogate's post. Many netizens agreed, with comments like "They're really in a hurry, starting to worry that Shen Po-yang will become mayor and they'll have to start working seriously..." and "If you want to attack, use the campaign team's name; using the city government's name violates administrative neutrality."

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They're really in a hurry, starting to worry that Shen Po-yang will become mayor and they'll have to start working seriously....

The department argued that connecting the "Grand Trail" to the "skyline of Greater Taipei" implies a "mountain to mountain" connection. They questioned how breakpoints could be connected without building a new trail, sarcastically asking if an "air corridor" was intended. Chou countered that breakpoints can be reconnected in various ways, and Shen's comments were about integrating Taipei's mountain and forest resources under his "ecological governance" concept.

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If you want to attack, use the campaign team's name; using the city government's name violates administrative neutrality.