The military yesterday confirmed that Major General Hsu Wei-kuang (徐偉光), the former deputy chief of Taiwan’s military delegation to the US, failed to pass an English qualifying exam but was still assigned to serve in the post.
Hsu is currently chief of the Combined Logistic Command’s Procurement Department.
Last November, local media reported that there was infighting within the delegation, saying that the then-head of Taiwan’s military delegation to the US Tan Chih-lung (淡志隆) was unhappy with Hsu’s performance, adding that Tan had cited some 30 counts of negligence against Hsu.
Tan later confirmed the media reports and alleged that Hsu abused his position and used US$10,000 of public funds to buy gifts to cultivate personal connections, overstepped his authority and failed to follow orders.
The Ministry of National Defense immediately sent a task force to the US to probe the matter, and Hsu was sent to military prosecutors for further investigation.
Ministry of National Defense spokesman Major General Yu Sy-tue (虞思祖) yesterday said Hsu did not violate the law, but investigators found that he had failed to pass an English exam to qualify for the post in the US. He scored 70, well under the pass mark of 90.
According to the military, there were three officials at the time vying for the deputy chief post in the US, and Hsu’s score in the English exam was the lowest.
Yu said while the appointment of Hsu was not entirely in line with regulations, he added that Hsu was assigned by then-defense minister Lee Tien-yu (李天羽) who was in charge of military personnel. Yu did not elaborate.
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