Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Luo Wen-chia (
Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (
Earlier, it was reported that Changhua County Commissioner Wong Chin-chu (
It was not clear why the Cabinet announced that Wong had agreed to be minister of education.
Wong, 57, was a teacher for 18 years -- at elementary, junior and senior high schools -- and served as a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker for nine years.
While some questioned Wong's qualifications, Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said that the education minister did not necessarily need to be a Nobel laureate or education expert.
Women were more sensitive and detail-oriented, he said, especially when dealing with such significant issues as education and culture.
According to Lin Chia-lung, Yu had offered her the post by telephone last Friday and received her in person on Saturday. Wong telephoned Yu late last night to accept the offer, he said.
Yu began to ask potential candidates for the new Cabinet about their interests yesterday. Vacant positions included the heads of the Ministry of Education, Council of Hakka Affairs and National Youth Commission.
"In addition to receiving incumbent Cabinet officials and listening to their personal wishes, the premier is asking potential Cabinet officials about their personal interests in some positions," Lin Chia-lung said. "While the process might take about seven to 10 days, we hope to finalize the new Cabinet line-up by May 5 or May 12."
Some positions such as justice minister will not change because the ministry is handling such "special tasks" as vote-buying and strengthening social security, Lin Chia-lung said.
He also revealed that Yu hoped to recruit more talented young blood to the Cabinet in such areas as economy, education, science, culture and social welfare.
Yu yesterday received Lin Fang-mei and DPP legislators Luo Wen-chia (
Lin Fang-mei told a press conference yesterday afternoon that Yu received her yesterday afternoon to ask her about her future plans.
"I told the premier that I don't own the position at the National Youth Commission because it's not my personal asset," she said. "I feel more like the foreman of a construction site and it's time for me to go when the project is done."
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard