Independent Taipei mayor-elect Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday introduced the second group of department heads in his city government — however, as before, his choices triggered protests and controversy.
Sitting with the department heads-to-be for a group picture, Ko introduced the second group to the public during a morning press conference.
“Based on the principles of open government, public participation and transparency, I’ve tried my best and put maximum effort into looking for the best candidates,” Ko said. “Although there have been controversies during the selection process, I still think it is much better than having the mayor make the decision alone.”
Photo: Wang Min-wei, Taipei Times
He said that diversity and function-orientation would be the two key elements of his government and that the majority of department heads had been selected by voting.
“My objective is to accomplish something within 100 days and I hope to make Taipei the best city,” he added.
The officials introduced were deputy secretary-general Lee Wen-ying (李文英), department of legal affairs director Yang Fang-ling (楊芳玲), department of social affairs director Hsu Li-min (許立民), department of environmental protection director Liu Ming-lung (劉銘龍), department of economic development director Lin Chung-chieh (林崇傑), department of transportation director Chung Hui-yu (鍾慧諭), department of culture director Ni Chong-hua (倪重華), department of labor director Lai Hsiang-ling (賴香伶), department of finance director Su Jain-rong (蘇建榮), department of land director Li Te-chuan (李得全), department of information technology director Lee Wei-bin (李維斌), research, development and evaluation commissioner Chen Ming-shiun (陳銘薰), Hakka affairs commissioner Chung Yong-feng (鍾永豐), water department director Chen Chin-hsiang (陳錦祥), Feitsui Reservoir administration director Hsieh Cheng-tao (謝政道) and department of civil servant development director Chu Chao-hsiang (曲兆祥).
However, the appointments of Yang, Hsu and Liu have sparked complaints.
After learning of Liu’s appointment , selection committee member, policy adviser and a long-time environmentalist Thomas Chan (詹順貴) declared that he would resign as a policy adviser because Ko did not choose from the three candidates recommended by the selection committee as promised.
Selection committee members for the social affairs department protested at a separate press conference against Hsu’s appointment, saying that, as a doctor at National Taiwan University Hospital, Hsu lacks a background in social welfare.
Ko responded by saying that he did not pick from the three finalists for environmental protection department director, because whether the candidate would work well with the team was the key factor.
The mayor-elect said that the selection committee for the social affairs department director recommended two candidates, “but during the interview, one of them said he was not ready for the job, while the other declined to take the job.”
“I’ve worked with Hsu for years, he’s been a social activist since he was young,” Ko said.
“Besides, he’s been in frequent contact with social groups, that’s why I’ve chosen him,” the mayor-elect said.
A group of Taiwanese-American and Tibetan-American students at Harvard University on Saturday disrupted Chinese Ambassador to the US Xie Feng’s (謝鋒) speech at the school, accusing him of being responsible for numerous human rights violations. Four students — two Taiwanese Americans and two from Tibet — held up banners inside a conference hall where Xie was delivering a speech at the opening ceremony of the Harvard Kennedy School China Conference 2024. In a video clip provided by the Coalition of Students Resisting the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), Taiwanese-American Cosette Wu (吳亭樺) and Tibetan-American Tsering Yangchen are seen holding banners that together read:
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