A man who once sold toothpaste and soap will be the new director-general of the Government Information Office.
Fifty-year-old Yeh Kuo-hsing (
In addition to being a salesman and property developer, Yeh's unusual career before choosing government service also included translating the bible from English to romanized Taiwanese.
While studying international law and relations in the US, Yeh passed the civil servant's examination. He joined the Board of Foreign Trade under the Ministry of Economic Affairs after returning to Taiwan.
A few months into civil service, Yeh found a new job at the Institute for National Policy Research, a private think tank, as the deputy executive director when the center was established in 1989.
The research center is headed by TSU Chairman Huang Chu-wen (黃主文) and is affiliated with Chang Yung-fa's (張榮發) Evergreen Group.
Before becoming an advisor at the National Security Council in May 2000, Yeh was a research fellow at the Taiwan Research Institute, where former president Lee Ten-hui (李登輝) is the honorary chairman.
His academic background is diverse as well. After graduating with a law degree from National Chung Hsing University, Yeh studied economics and politics at Waseda University in Japan.
Later, Yeh pursued master's degrees in international law and relations.
In addition to his native Hokkien and Mandarin, Yeh is fluent in English, Japanese, Spanish, Russian and German.
During Wednesday's appointment ceremony, incoming Premier Yu Shyi-kun said Yeh was an individual who possesses "clarity of thinking" and "professional expertise in international studies."
In the eyes of Yeh's friend and former co-worker, Lien Cheng-shih (連正世), Yeh is a "scholar without a snobby manner."
Lien has known Yeh for about three years and worked with him at the Taiwan Research Institute between 1998 and 2000.
"We all like him because he's such an amiable person," Lien said. "Since he doesn't talk much and keeps a low profile, it's hard to tell from the outside that he's an accomplished scholar."
Lien said he wasn't surprised that Yeh was appointed as a Cabinet official, because he said his friend is smart and possesses strong writing and analytical skills.
Another former co-worker, Lin Bih-jaw (林碧炤), described Yeh as "someone who puts his words into practice."
RSS