The Cabinet led by Premier Lin Chuan (林全) had its first weekly meeting yesterday, with Lin saying that there will be no “adjustment period” for the government, which is expected to push for various reforms.
The Cabinet meeting was the first since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was sworn in with the new administration on Friday last week, when Lin said he hopes that the Cabinet will be a disciplined team that would show its esprit de corps with professionalism and resolve.
Lin said that he hopes the Cabinet could make major changes in a short period of time in a bid to re-establish the public’s trust in the government, adding that he has three demands and three expectations.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
“First, the making of the government’s public policies must be a process that allows sufficient communication with the public; every policy’s starting point should be the public’s needs, expectations and dignity,” Lin said.
The second demand was to set priorities so that policies would be implemented with efficiency, as the government’s resources are limited, he said.
“The administration aims for the nation’s sustainable development based on the idea of ‘people first’ and three core values of ‘innovation, employment and fair distribution,’” Lin said, adding that the third demand would be effective “cross-ministerial integration” when planning and carrying out policies to make sure the principles are met.
The three expectations would re-establish people’s trust in the government, set up an example of an honest officialdom that is discreet in using power and in its behaviors and remarks, and to cherish the opportunity to work for the public and the nation, he said.
Lin reiterated Tsai’s remarks about humility when the Democratic Progressive Party won the elections on Jan. 16, calling on Cabinet members to remain humble.
The Cabinet meeting was attended by five of the six special municipality mayors — Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦), Taichung Mayor Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), Tainan Mayor William Lai (賴清德) and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊).
New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) continued his past practice of sending New Taipei City Deputy Mayor Chen Shen-hsien (陳伸賢) to attend in his place.
An essay competition jointly organized by a local writing society and a publisher affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) might have contravened the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said on Thursday. “In this case, the partner organization is clearly an agency under the CCP’s Fujian Provincial Committee,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said at a news briefing in Taipei. “It also involves bringing Taiwanese students to China with all-expenses-paid arrangements to attend award ceremonies and camps,” Liang said. Those two “characteristics” are typically sufficient
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