Tue, May 15, 2001 page8

• Editorial: Better advisors means better advice

  • • 
    • 
    • 

  Lack of control over personnel appointments was one of the biggest problems facing Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) when he took over the Presidential Office. The office only has 14 positions he can freely appoint people to. This limitation makes creation of a strong presidential think tank impossible and it has been a major source of obstacles for Chen in his first year.

  On the other hand, the president has ample freedom to appoint advisors. He can legally appoint 30 "senior advisors" (15 of whom receive the same salary as a vice premier, the rest are unpaid) and 90 national policy advisors (30 of whom are paid ministerial salaries). The problem is that these positions have traditionally been used to repay political favors or for public relations purposes -- to win over local faction leaders and other political forces.

  But despite the slew of advisors, presidents have rarely actually consulted them on questions of policy. Such a tradition is a waste of political resources. It is also the cause of complaints from advisors who feel their talents and time are being both wasted and ignored. They have the prestige of a title, without having to do anything to back it up.

  Even worse, however, it that the behavior of advisors can become a burden on the president, the source of controversy. This is the situation now facing Chen. His controversial advisors include Chen Chao-chuan (陳朝傳), who is at the center of an alleged sex scandal that erupted yesterday; Shi Wen-lung (許文龍) and Alice King (金美齡), whose pro-independence tendencies have been attacked by the pro-unification camp; Peter Ng (黃文雄), the would-be assassin of the late president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國); Hsieh Tsung-min (謝聰敏), whose hot pursuit of the Lafayette frigate scandal has stirred up some doubt as to exactly whose side he is on; and Hsu Hsin-liang (許信良), the former DPP chairman who has a fondness for singing out of tune with Chen.

  Chen used to defend his appointments, saying his advisors reflect the plurality of Taiwan society. But several have also come under criticism for holding dual nationality. To quell the controversy over this issue, the Presidential Office has announced that it will no longer appoint people who hold two or more nationalities to advisory positions. While this move will reduce criticism of the advisors, it is by no means proactive.

  For the advisory teams to really be of use, the president will have to give up the tradition of handing these posts out as political favors. Professional knowledge should be the prime consideration in selecting advisors, who should also be divided into teams according to their expertise -- finance and economics, national security, international affairs and so on. This will allow good advisors to provide their wisdom and experience, stimulate policy research work within the Presidential Office and really get to help the president and the nation.

  This has been Chen's biggest inadequacy over the past year and something he most urgently needs to improve. And if Chen uses more stringent criteria instead of personal connections, then the Presidential Office will be able to distance itself from what the advisors say and do. The political leanings and nationality of the advisors will also become less important considerations. Many of the Executive Yuan's technology advisors are foreigners. They have made a significant contribution to Taiwan's technology industries. At the same time, very few people have criticized them over the nationality issue.

  If the president defines his advisors from a political perspective, the outside world will view them from that perspective as well. If he defines them on a professional basis, then society will also measure them with the yardstick of professionalism.
• Most Popular

  • 1

    Ministry lifts overseas limits on TSMC

  • 2

    New missiles to be deployed in north

  • 3

    Chinese spy prosecutions tripled in four years

  • 4

    TSMC has begun 4-nm chip production in US, official says

  • 5

    Snowfall a reminder of former ski resort on Hehuanshan