Executive Yuan spokesman Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) is to be the nation’s new minister of transportation and communications, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) announced yesterday.
Chen is to succeed former transport minister Li Meng-yen (李孟諺), who resigned on Tuesday last week after his decade-long extramarital affair was revealed on an online forum.
“Chen followed government officials in inspecting infrastructure damage caused by a magnitude 7.2 earthquake that struck off Hualien on April 3 and Typhoon Gaemi earlier this month. He knows the challenges the new government faces,” Cho told a news conference after the weekly Cabinet meeting.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“We have observed how Chen worked and his ability to quickly grasp the fundamental questions in various issues. President William Lai (賴清德) and I think that Chen can handle the job,” Cho added.
Having served as Taichung city councilor for many years, Chen is also well-informed about the problems with local transportation systems, Cho said.
“I am confident his expertise in politics and corporate management also prepares him to select the right people for different tasks, run the transportation ministry efficiently and take the ministry forward,” he said.
Chen is scheduled to take office on Monday next week.
Julia Hsieh (謝子涵), who serves as the Executive Yuan deputy spokesperson, is to temporarily serve as spokesperson.
Chen was appointed because of his grasp of government policies and his ability to communicate with the media and among government officials, a source familiar with the matter said.
He is a great communicator and is “able to translate policies that are often difficult to understand and convey them clearly to the public,” the source said. “He is also capable of communicating and coordinating among government agencies, and in so doing government policies can be implemented smoothly.”
The appointment of Chen, who does not have an academic background in transportation, shows that the new Cabinet seeks to introduce transportation policy reforms that make a difference to people’s lives, without being confined to the opinions of so-called “experts,” the source said.
During his time in Taichung, Chen asked the city government to plan ahead the transit system before the Taichung MRT system would be completed, including public bus and public bike services.
However, Chen’s appointment drew mixed reactions.
“The Cabinet would have to convince the public that Chen has the expertise and the ability to run the transportation ministry, which has an annual budget of about NT$60 billion [US$1.88 billion],” said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷), who previously served as convener of the legislature’s Transportation Committee.
Chen does not have transportation-related experience, National Drivers’ Alliance chairman Liu Hung-chang (劉鴻樟) said.
“There is a lot to learn about transportation, and Li and acting transportation minister Chen Yen-po (陳彥伯) could assume the post because they have accumulated significant administrative experience,” Liu said. “While I recognize that the Democratic Progressive Party is willing to groom young politicians for public office, I am not sure Chen is ready for such an important job and he might feel overwhelmed.”
Taiwan Vision Zero Alliance board director Lo Yi (羅宜) said that whoever serves as minister must be able to consolidate issues involved in policies and communicate with different interest groups.
“We welcome such an appointment so long as the new minister is willing to tackle transportation issues using people-oriented approaches. He should continue to communicate with driver’s rights and pedestrian rights groups before stipulating any new policy. We still have a long way to go in reducing casualties caused by traffic accidents,” Lo said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS