Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) landslide victory to get re-elected on Saturday sparked speculation over whether he would run in the 2004 presidential election and whether a reshuffle of his administration is imminent.
Sources indicated that up to eight top departmental chiefs might be replaced, including one of the deputy mayors, Bai Hsiu-hsiung (白秀雄), who is about to retire. He may be replaced by Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆), a former New Party legislator who specializes in economic and financial management.
Lai served as spokesman for Ma's mayoral campaign and he is currently a professor of business administration at National Chengchi University.
Asked whether he would serve as Deputy Taipei Mayor, Lai said yesterday, "I haven't heard anything about that."
"Mayor Ma hasn't contacted me about this issue yet," he said.
However, Lai added that he would be more than willing to offer his assistance to the mayor should Ma need his advice on the city's financial and economic development.
The vice director-general of Ma's campaign office, Lin Huo-wang (林火旺), a professor of philosophy at National Taiwan University, might also be made director of the city's Research, Development and Evaluation Commission, replacing Wu Shiouh-guang (吳秀光).
Wu would return to his teaching post at the department of public relations at National Chengchi University if he was to be removed from his temporary position as a city departmental chief.
Another official who could have his period of transfer to the city government terminated, is the head of the Bureau of Social Affairs Chen Jeaw-mei (陳皎眉), who would go back to his post as a professor of psychology at the National Chengchi University.
Other department chiefs who may be re-assigned include the director of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Lung Ying-tai (龍應台); the director of the Bureau of Labor Affairs, Cheng Tsun-chi (鄭村棋); the head of the Bureau of Civil Affairs, Lin Cheng-hsiu (林正修); the chief of the Bureau of Education, David S.J. Lee (
Of these officials, Lung and Cheng had said earlier that they wished to serve only one term, while Lin might be transferred to take up Huang's position as director of the Hakka Affairs Commission. If Huang loses his position it might be the result of criticism over his qualifications -- a subject that sparked rifts among local Hakka groups.
Eighty percent of Ma's incumbent department heads are expected to retain their posts, sources indicated. Ma had said earlier that he is satisfied with his administration team and that he wishes that every member of his team could stay on.
Mayor Ma's administration is scheduled to resign from office on Dec. 17 and the new administration may be announced as soon as Dec. 25.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday briefed her party’s Central Standing Committee regarding her scheduled visit to the US between Monday next week and June 16, saying that her purpose would be to persuade the US that the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution was a “one China” constitution that would foster stable and peaceful cross-strait relations. The ROC Constitution is the most important defense for all Taiwanese citizens, as it upholds our democracy and has contributed to our robust economy, which aligns with international and US interests, she said. “We would not be troublemakers and drag the US under,”
RSS