"Free to Lecture" When did Wei Zaowen's name offend the Kuomintang?

Wei Zaowen, an independent candidate for Keelung mayor. (File photo)

Keelung Mayor Xie Guoliang said at the end of the mayoral election debate that the name of independent candidate Wei Zaowen was a homophone for "forged documents" and asked him if he came specifically to "disgust the KMT". The current mayor actually used his own homophonic associations to question his opponent's motives for running for election, and used other people's names as a provocation to the political party.

The debate that day was between Xie Guoliang and Democratic Progressive Party candidate Tong Ziwei. Wei Zaowen did not attend. However, Xie Guoliang made fun of him in the conclusion where he had the right to speak. The person named was unable to respond on the spot, and citizens could not hear specific criticism of his political views or words and deeds. The debate stage became a one-way attack by the incumbent on the absentee candidate.

Xie Guoliang first spelled out the homophony, and then used this homophony to question whether Wei Zaowen deliberately ran for election to humiliate the Kuomintang. Wei Zaowen's name is a personal identity, and "forged documents" is a legal term; the person who puts the two together is Xie Guoliang. Making your own associations but asking others to take responsibility for the associations is tantamount to treating speculation as evidence. If Wei Zaowen really had inappropriate words and deeds, he can be criticized based on his behavior; just based on his name, even the starting point of the accusation cannot be established.

The Kuomintang has indeed had cases of forgery of jointly signed documents in the past, and the relevant responsibilities will be clarified by individual evidence and judicial procedures. If Xie Guoliang is particularly sensitive to "forged documents", he should also be facing incidents that have happened. Projecting the controversy endured by the party onto Wei Zaowen and asking the other party to defend his name will only expose the party's embarrassment in judicial cases.

In the 2025 general recall, Lanying was involved in a phantom recall case, and many party headquarters were raided. Kuomintang legislator Lai Shibao said, "Even if you make a mistake, the most you can do is forge a document. Is it that serious?" (File photo)

The tickets for the election are determined by law, and the winner is determined by the voters. It is not the KMT's turn to judge whether the names of other candidates are "offensive." Xie Guoliang can criticize Wei Zaowen's political opinions, qualifications, public words and deeds; the current mayor has the responsibility to present verifiable facts. Now, what he attacks is only the sound of a few words, which will not help the citizens of Keelung understand who will be the next mayor at all.

In the same epilogue, Tse complained about removals and political attacks during his term, but then turned around and used jokes to publicly disparage another candidate. Having experienced dismissal, he still chooses to treat people who have no chance to defend themselves as a joke, which is particularly glaring. Keelung requires three candidates to be tested on the same ballot, rather than the mayor setting up a set of name checks for political parties. Xie Guoliang owed Wei Zaowen an apology.

(The author is a retired person)