By Kaohsiung Times (with attribution to NOWnews / 政客爽 & CNA):
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Lai Rui-long (賴瑞隆), who is actively seeking his party’s nomination for the 2026 Kaohsiung mayoral race, is facing intense scrutiny after reports that his second-grade son chased and bullied a female classmate at school. The girl’s parents have also accused the school of responding too slowly to the incident. Lai broke down in tears at a press conference on Sunday, where he apologized in person to the girl’s parents and said he would arrange for his son to transfer to another school, according to NOWnews.
Lai Rui-long said on Monday that he would focus on resolving the recent school incident involving his young son before fully returning to campaign activities.
However, the political commentary page “Zhengke Shuang” (政客爽) strongly criticized Lai’s public appearance, calling it “a lesson in how politicians put on a show in front of the media” and arguing that, although Lai now appears sincere, the victim’s family had already waited 53 days for a face-to-face apology.
Others point out that the kids in the incident are both very young and that the matter may have been blown out of proportion.
CNA reports that while speaking to reporters at the Legislative Yuan, Lai confirmed that the victim’s family has accepted his apology and that both sides reached a basic understanding during a one-hour meeting on Sunday.
When asked if he plans to resume his full campaign schedule, Lai responded that, for now, family matters take precedence. He noted that political setbacks are unavoidable but must be met with accountability and improvement.
Lai added that politics may be temporary, but parenthood is permanent, calling it “the most important job” at this moment. He also stated that he clarified what he views as exaggerated reporting in some media outlets during his discussion with the girl’s family and expressed gratitude that they agreed to record the meeting to show constructive communication.
