Economic, public security and cultural policies should be the government’s priorities, Premier William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday as he paid separate visits to former premiers Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and Yu Shyi-kun to seek advice on running an administration.
After a closed meeting with Su in Taipei, Lai said Su told him that the priorities of the new Cabinet should be economic development and public security.
“The government has to do everything it can to develop the economy and it has to listen to advice to give people a good quality of life,” Lai quoted Su as saying.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
The priority for law enforcement is to crack down on drugs, Lai said, adding that Su shared his experience of combating drug trafficking during his premiership and when he was Taipei County commissioner.
Su told him that, as the head of the Cabinet, the premier has to set goals and show resolve while monitoring the government’s performance at all times, Lai said.
“I am glad for the country that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) had the vision to tap Lai as the premier,” Su said. “Lai’s achievements, determination and performance are widely recognized and I expect the new premier to put his skills to use leading the country.”
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
Yu said his suggestions were of limited use to Lai as he has left the office 12 years ago, adding that he had confidence in Lai, who has all-round experience in the legislature and in governance.
Having previously urged Lai to run for New Taipei City mayor in next year’s municipal elections, Yu said he made the suggestion because Lai was a worthy candidate and he did not know the president had selected him to lead the Cabinet.
“Some media took the opportunity and claimed that I was holding him back from taking over the Cabinet. It was absolutely untrue,” Yu said.
Lai said Yu told him to prioritize economic development and cultural policy.
Yu told him to make economic development his top priority and to personally chair various economic meetings to display the government’s determination to boost the economy, Lai said.
He said Yu also told him to attach importance to cultural policies to highlight Taiwanese identity.
The Cabinet has to set clear goals for the administration and make sure the public understands those goals, and the Cabinet has to learn to keep up with industrial trends, Lai quoted Yu as saying.
Lai said he would like to seek advice from former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) premiers if he would have the chance.
Lai is to pay visits to the different legislative caucuses today to seek support from lawmakers, as is traditional Cabinet practice, Executive Yuan spokesman Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) said yesterday.
Although most of former premier Lin Chuan’s (林全) Cabinet officials are staying on, the Cabinet reshuffle is not a minor restructuring, Hsu said, adding that the three top Cabinet officials — the premier, vice premier and Executive Yuan secretary-general — have been replaced.
Hsu disputed criticism that it was Tsai instead of Lai that had controlled the Cabinet appointments.
All Cabinet members were selected by Lai himself, Hsu said.
Tsai and Lai have several channels at their disposal to communicate about affairs of government, but routine weekly meetings as were held between Tsai and Lin might not continue, Hsu said.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS