The Presidential Office last night confirmed that former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) would be the next premier, with a formal announcement to be made tomorrow.
The Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) yesterday published an exclusive report saying that Chen had accepted the nomination following a meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) during the Lunar New Year holiday.
The nomination has to be approved by the Legislative Yuan, with opposition lawmakers vowing to scrutinize his performance if Chen was nominated.
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
Chen accepted the nomination because he believes the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) must be united for the presidential election in January next year, the report said, adding that the new Cabinet must strive to deliver the best performance within a little more than a year to support the DPP’s presidential candidate.
“I would like to remind the next premier that people would only feel safe and secure if the new premier heeds public opinion, addresses the nation’s rising crime rate and protects the nation’s cybersecurity systems,” Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Cultural and Communications Committee head Hung Mong-kai (洪孟楷) said.
“I also hope that the new premier would select Cabinet members from among professionals and experts. He should not pick those who lost in the nine-in-one local elections or from a narrow circle of people,” Hung added.
KMT caucus whip William Cheng (曾銘宗) said that the public would have an even more negative view of the DPP administration if Chen were to lead the Cabinet.
Chen “lacks administrative experience, and he had favored Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp (高端疫苗),” Tseng said, referring to the developer of a local COVID-19 vaccine, which has been a target of KMT criticism.
“He also made controversial comments while campaigning for other candidates during the nine-in-one elections last year. The KMT caucus will scrutinize his performance and carefully question him when the next legislative session opens next month,” Tseng said.
Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Jang Chyi-lu (張其祿) said Chen would have no “honeymoon” once his nomination is approved.
“The country is experiencing all sorts of problems, from strained cross-strait relations to skyrocketing housing prices, stagnant salaries, delays in US arms sales to Taiwan, and a decline in agricultural and fishery product exports. These issues will have to be addressed immediately once he becomes premier,” Jang said.
DPP Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said Chen has a positive image as a public health expert.
“As the convener in charge of reforming the pension systems for military personnel, civil servants and public school teachers, Chen showed great communication skills. As a Catholic, he cares for the economically disadvantaged, and knows a lot of people in diplomatic and religious circles,” Hsu said.
PROVOCATIVE: Chinese Deputy Ambassador to the UN Sun Lei accused Japan of sending military vessels to deliberately provoke tensions in the Taiwan Strait China denounced remarks by Japan and the EU about the South China Sea at a UN Security Council meeting on Monday, and accused Tokyo of provocative behavior in the Taiwan Strait and planning military expansion. Ayano Kunimitsu, a Japanese vice foreign minister, told the Council meeting on maritime security that Tokyo was seriously concerned about the situation in the East China and South China seas, and reiterated Japan’s opposition to any attempt to change the “status quo” by force, and obstruction of freedom of navigation and overflight. Stavros Lambrinidis, head of the EU delegation to the UN, also highlighted South China Sea
The final batch of 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks purchased from the US arrived at Taipei Port last night and were transported to the Armor Training Command in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口), completing the military’s multi-year procurement of 108 of the tanks. Starting at 12:10am today, reporters observed more than a dozen civilian flatbed trailers departing from Taipei Port, each carrying an M1A2T tank covered with black waterproof tarps. Escorted by military vehicles, the convoy traveled via the West Coast Expressway to the Armor Training Command, with police implementing traffic control. The army operates about 1,000 tanks, including CM-11 Brave Tiger
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it expects its 2-nanometer (2nm) chip capacity to grow at a compound annual rate of 70 percent from this year to 2028. The projection comes as five fabs begin volume production of 2-nanometer chips this year — two in Hsinchu and three in Kaohsiung — TSMC senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer Cliff Hou (侯永清) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Silicon Valley, California, last week. Output in the first year of 2-nanometer production, which began in the fourth quarter of last year, is expected to
Taiwan’s drone exports surged past US$100 million in the first quarter, exceeding last year’s full-year total, with the Czech Republic emerging as the largest buyer, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said. Exports of complete drones reached US$115.85 million in the period, about 1.2 times the total recorded for all of last year, the ministry said in a report. Exports to the Czech Republic accounted for about US$100 million, far outpacing other markets. Poland, last year’s top destination, recorded about US$11.75 million in the first quarter. Taiwan’s drone exports have expanded rapidly in the past few years, with last year’s total
RSS