He was born in Dunedin, but ‘‘home town’’ was a better way to express his heart-felt connection to the city before his elevation to city councillor, he said.
The Otago Daily Times has a copy of Cr Ong’s birth certificate, confirming he was born in Dunedin.
Cr Ong returned from overseas last year and campaigned successfully for election to the Dunedin City Council.
In a Facebook post last month, he quibbled with an article about him on The Spinoff website, including its references to where he was born.
Cr Ong said in the post he had returned to his home town, ‘‘not birthplace’’.
Cr Ong did not immediately provide clarification about his meaning to the ODT, which reported on the issue, but he cleared up any confusion yesterday.
‘‘This is somewhere I truly have a deep connection and attachment to.’’
