Lai’s wife makes rare public appearance to endorse husband

Taipei, Dec. 27 (CNA) Second Lady Wu Mei-ju (吳玫如) has made a rare appearance in a video endorsing her husband and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Lai Ching-te (賴清德), in which she called Lai a "trustworthy" person with "a strong sense of responsibility."

In the two-minute video released by Lai's campaign office on Wednesday, Wu, who has generally stayed out of the limelight during her husband's political career, said she is "proud" of what he has achieved.

He has dedicated himself to serving people, Wu said of the DPP candidate in the video, which showed pictures of Lai, a doctor-turned politician, doing voluntary service, as a member of the now-defunct National Assembly, and taking part in pro-democracy campaigns.

Describing Lai as a "not so romantic" but "trustworthy" person with "a strong sense of responsibility," Wu said the DPP candidate will be fearless when trying to protect people.

The video, directed by filmmaker Yang Li-chou (楊力州), marked the first time Wu has publicly endorsed her husband in Lai's 30-year political career, Kuo Ya-hui (郭雅慧), spokeswoman for Lai's campaign office, told a press event on Wednesday.

Wu has long accompanied and supported Lai since university, but the second lady never interferes with Lai's work, Kuo said, noting that the two are "life-long partners" who respect each other's autonomy.

Meanwhile, Yang said the video seeks to capture Wu's ordinary life, such as shopping at the wet market and hiking in the mountains, while providing a glimpse of the couple's private life through an interview with the second lady.

After marrying Lai in 1986, Wu maintained her low-key lifestyle even after her husband entered politics in the 1990s.

According to local media reports, Wu applied to be transferred from Taiwan Power Company's Tainan office to Hsinta Power Plant in Kaohsiung after Lai was elected Tainan mayor in 2010 to avoid any conflict of interest.

It remains unclear whether she still works at the state-owned enterprise.