President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday denied speculation that his eldest daughter, Lesley Ma (馬唯中), had returned from the US to arrange her wedding.
Ma said that while he did not seek to avoid the media on the matter, it was not necessary to announce his daughter’s personal schedule because she was not a public figure.
“It is enough that there are two public figures in my family,” he said. “We would not and could not hide it if there was a wedding going on.”
Ma made the remarks in Pingtung County yesterday afternoon during a visit to Aboriginal schools and communities.
Yesterday was the first time Ma had taken the presidential aircraft since its exterior was repainted in its original colors. It was compared to a “big frog” and nicknamed the “toothpaste plane” after its bottom was painted green when Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) was president.
Asked about a planned trip abroad, Ma said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would make the announcement this week.
The ministry has been arranging for Ma to attend the June 1 inauguration of El Salvadoran president-elect Mauricio Funes.
Ma is also likely to visit Panama in July to attend the inauguration of the country’s next president. Central and South America and the Caribbean are Taiwan’s diplomatic strongholds, with many of its 23 diplomatic allies located there.
Ma is also likely to attend a summit meeting between the leaders of Taiwan and its South Pacific allies in August or September in the Solomon Islands.
Meanwhile, Ma dismissed speculation that he had forced Minister without Portfolio Chu Yun-peng (朱雲鵬) to resign, adding that Chu’s character and his family’s expectations were behind the decision.
Premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) approved Chu’s resignation on Saturday night after Chu admitted he had skipped work to go on dates during office hours.
Ma said that while he was saddened to part with the economist, both he and Liu respected Chu’s decision, Ma said.
Ma said Chu’s case was different from that of National Security Council Secretary-General Su Chi’s (蘇起) wife, Chen Yue-ching (陳月卿), because Chen was not a civil servant and she did not violate any rules.
Chen raised eyebrows when she went to China to promote her new book early this month.
She told TV reporters in Beijing that there were no regulations preventing her from traveling.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
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