Cabinet Spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦) yesterday announced the details of a minor reshuffle.
As part of the reshuffle, Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) Chairman Hu Sheng-cheng (胡勝正) will become the new chairman of the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) while Minister Without Portfolio Ho Mei-yueh (何美玥), who was previously minister of economic affairs, will double as the new CEPD chairwoman, Cheng added.
Jongher Yang (楊忠和), president of Taipei Physical Educational College, will succeed Chen Chuan-shou (陳全壽) as chairman of the National Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, the spokesman said.
Chen offered his resignation following last month's Asian Games in Doha because the performances of Taiwanese athletes did not live up to his expectations.
As the term of office for members of the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) is set to come to an end later this month, the Cabinet also announced nine new members.
Tang Jinn-chuan (湯金全), former deputy mayor of Kaohsiung, will replace Hwang Tzong-leh (黃宗樂) as the commission's new chairman while vice chairman Yu Chau-chiuan (余朝權) will remain in his position, Cheng said.
Cheng said that Hu had worked on financial reform for many years and the government had adopted many of the proposals and suggestions put forward by the CEPD.
"The non-performing loan ratio was reduced from above 12 percent in 1999 to 2.3 percent this year. We believe that his appointment [as FSC chairman] will be accepted in professional circles," Cheng said.
Asked whether Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) had cleared the appointment with the president, Cheng said that there was a "full discussion" between the premier and the president on the matter.
Former FSC chairman Shih Jun-ji (施俊吉) unexpectedly announced his resignation on Jan. 12 in the wake of the Rebar Group scandal.
Talking of Ho, Cheng said that she was a suitable successor to the CEPD chairman on account of her good understanding of the nation's economic situation.
"Ho started her career as a basic civil servant. She can communicate well with business and is good at all kinds of administrative coordination," Cheng added.
also see story:
Hu appointed chairman of FSC
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Amusement Tax Act (娛樂稅法) that would abolish taxes on films, cultural activities and competitive sporting events, retaining the fee only for dance halls and golf courses. The proposed changes would set the maximum tax rate for dance halls and golf courses at 50 and 20 percent respectively, with local governments authorized to suspend the levies. Article 2 of the act says that “amusement tax shall be levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement places, facilities or activities” in six categories: “Cinema; professional singing, story-telling, dancing, circus, magic show, acrobatics
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
INFLATION UP? The IMF said CPI would increase to 1.5 percent this year, while the DGBAS projected it would rise to 1.68 percent, with GDP per capita of US$44,181 The IMF projected Taiwan’s real GDP would grow 5.2 percent this year, up from its 2.1 percent outlook in January, despite fears of global economic disruptions sparked by the US-Iran conflict. Taiwan’s consumer price index (CPI) is projected to increase to 1.5 percent, while unemployment would be 3.4 percent, roughly in line with estimates for Asia as a whole, the international body wrote in its Global Economic Outlook Report published in the US on Monday. The figures are comparatively better than the IMF outlook for the rest of the world, which pegged real GDP growth at 3.1 percent, down from 3.3 percent