Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday thanked former vice premier Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁), a physician, for his contributions to the nation’s fight against COVID-19, during Chen’s last Cabinet meeting in the position.
During a morning Cabinet meeting on Dec. 31 last year, Chen pointed to a not yet unidentified disease spreading in Wuhan, China, saying that it required the government’s special attention, Su said.
That afternoon, Taiwan became the first nation to head to Wuhan to investigate the novel coronavirus, which marked the start of its disease prevention work, he said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
It was the nation’s acumen in detecting the pandemic that allowed it to become a success story in fighting COVID-19, the premier said.
During his stint as vice premier, Chen, as chief information security officer, also led the Cabinet’s information technology team in pushing for 5G development and upholding information security, Su said.
Chen’s use of big data in contact tracing has significantly helped the nation’s disease prevention efforts, he said.
Su said that fate has given Chen the opportunity to apply his expertise to do something extraordinary, which he can look back on with fondness.
Some people have waited a lifetime for this opportunity, he added.
“The plot of your life has been written, you just do not know it yet,” Chen said, quoting Su.
Chen added that his tenure at the Executive Yuan was the most memorable chapter of his life.
He was fortunate to have been on an “A-team” that has a deep passion for the nation and shared ideals to make it better, Chen said.
Chen, who has been nominated by the Democratic Progressive Party as its candidate for the Aug. 15 Kaohsiung mayoral by-election, said that he prayed his colleagues would forget about him dogging them for results when pushing policies.
Chen became vice premier when Su became the premier for a second time on Jan. 14 last year.
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