Taiwan Party Slams Mayor for Blaming Central Government in Toxic Oil Scandal

Taichung's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) council group has sharply criticized Mayor Lu Shiow-yen, accusing her of deflecting responsibility for a toxic oil scandal onto the central government.

The controversy surrounds soybean salad oil from Chung Lien Oil, which was found to contain excessive levels of the carcinogen benzo(a)pyrene (BaP). The DPP councilors argue that the incident stems from the Taichung city government's inadequate source management. They highlighted that since 2023, Taichung has experienced 13 significant food safety incidents, yet the city government's response has primarily involved fining manufacturers without taking direct responsibility.

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Mayor Lu Shiow-yen should not push the responsibility to the central government again. This matter is due to poor source management, and it is the Taichung city government's fault.

DPP councilors questioned the city's response, particularly noting that Nan Chiao, a company, identified issues with the affected oil batch in April. Despite this, the city government reportedly did not receive a notification until June, when the contamination was confirmed. The party expressed concern over the health of citizens who consumed the contaminated oil and demanded to know how the city government would be held accountable.

Council members also raised concerns about the traceability of ingredients, urging the city government to thoroughly investigate whether the suspect soybean raw materials had entered other food products. They called for greater transparency in information disclosure and better oversight of food supply chains to protect public health. The DPP insisted that Mayor Lu should apologize for the city's handling of the crisis and implement effective measures to prevent future occurrences.

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The heavy fines imposed by the Taichung city government now are just post-event remediation. I demand that the city government and its Food and Drug Administration clearly announce whether inspections were conducted at the production site and at every stage.