《TAIPEI TIMES》 Money ready to cover forum’s costs: Ko’s wife

By Cheng Ming-hsiang and Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporter, with staff writer

The wife of Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je （柯文哲） yesterday posted a photograph of a bank passbook on Facebook, saying the money in the account could be withdrawn if needed after the Taipei City Council demanded that Ko pay for the Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum out of his own pocket.

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The council on Wednesday passed a resolution asking Ko to cover the NT$950,000 （US$31,743） spent on the forum himself as he insisted on holding the event, although it did not meet a proviso on how its budget should be used.

The council in January passed a budget for the forum with a provision stating that “if the Chinese Communist Party’s aircraft or warships continue to disturb Taiwan before the forum, the budget cannot be used.”

The government ignored the provision and held the forum via a videoconference on Tuesday last week without informing the council in advance, sparking anger among councilors across parties.

Ko yesterday reiterated the importance of the forum, saying that “there are bound to be conflicts between both sides of the Taiwan-Strait, but that is all the more reason to hold it [the forum].”

Ko has said he had asked his wife, Peggy Chen （陳佩琪）, to post less frequently on Facebook to avoid controversy.

However, Chen yesterday posted a photograph of a passbook showing a balance of NT$1,112,965 and a personal chop, saying the money could be withdrawn any time if needed.

Taipei City Government spokeswoman Chen Chih-han （陳智菡） said that the government respects the council’s decision, but would ask the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics whether it had to inform the council before it used the budget.

It would also inquire about possible solutions if the budget is frozen, she added.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES