Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) will continue to lead the government following the resignation of the Cabinet, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday, adding that he would discuss the new Cabinet with Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) after he returns home from Central America.
Chen told reporters in Saint Lucia that he would reappoint Chang as premier if nothing unusual happened. Chang had said he would lead the Cabinet to resign on Jan. 28, as per custom.
Council of Hakka Affairs Deputy Minister Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) and Sports Affairs Council Deputy Chairman Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) -- who were elected as legislators-at-large -- will have to resign their positions.
PHOTO: CHEN TSE-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
Chen said that he would discuss the new appointments with Hsieh as soon as he returns from his trip.
Chen dismissed claims that he and Hsieh had a different campaign strategy, saying they saw eye to eye on the notion that a Taiwan-centered consciousness should not be abandoned.
Chen said there is no such thing as a "middle way" and that the path he has adopted is that of Taiwan-centered consciousness and social justice, adding that he believed Hsieh would continue down the same road.
"The path of Taiwan-centered consciousness is the mainstream and the correct one to take," he said.
"There is nothing wrong with that. We must insist on doing the right thing and going down the right path. Don't ever abandon it simply because we lost the [legislative] elections," he said.
Chen said many factors had contributed to the party's defeat in the legislative elections and that as party chairman he should be held fully responsible.
Saying he did not want to see party members dwell on the issue of who should be held responsible for the defeat, Chen urged the party to focus on the presidential election in March. It is the responsibility of Hsieh and all party members to help the party win the March election, he said.
Chen, who resigned as party chairman following the party's defeat, said Hsieh would be the "leading actor" during the electoral campaign and would dictate campaign strategy.
While the referendum seeking to reclaim Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) stolen assets failed on Saturday, Chen said he was optimistic about the referendum on joining the UN under the name "Taiwan," which will be held concurrently with the March election.
Chen said the two referendums proposed by the DPP and the KMT were both meant to safeguard the nation's sovereignty.
In an interview with Formosa TV last night, Hsieh said he would appoint a chief executive officer (CEO) from the business world as premier if elected president in March.
That person would have to be acceptable to the KMT, he said.
"A business CEO knows about time, cost, the market and consumers, and thus would run the government in an efficient way," he said.
Responding to a media report that interpreted some of his comments as meaning that, given the KMT-dominated legislature, he would "passively" exercise his presidential powers, Hsieh said he would rather characterize his comment as meaning that he would seek "reconciliation and co-existence."
Hsieh said he would not "hand over" to the KMT the power to form a cabinet.
"If the president gives up the power to form a cabinet unconditionally, he will become a titular president," he said.
In related news, the KMT Central Standing Committee yesterday nominated incumbent Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
The party will accept the registrations of candidates for deputy speaker today and tomorrow before it holds a coordination meeting on Saturday, KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) told a press conference.
The KMT caucus will hold a straw poll if the coordination fails, he said, adding that the committee would finalize the nomination next Wednesday.
Asked for comment, Wang said he would maintain impartiality during the nomination process, adding that anyone who would like to enter the competition should be able to assist the speaker.
The new legislature will hold the election for speaker after it convenes a new session on Feb. 1.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SHIH HSIU-CHUAN AND FLORA WANG
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
RSS