The Presidential Office yesterday named Vice Premier Chang Chung-hsiung (
Chang immediately took office and held his first weekly Cabinet meeting, where outgoing Premier Tang Fei (
Chang said that the Cabinet reshuffle triggered by Tang's resignation would be small and announced no later than today in order to maintain political stability.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
The new premier yesterday confirmed, however, that Minister of National Defense Wu Shih-wen (
Su Tzen-ping (
Sources in the Cabinet revealed that Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Hsin-yi (
In addition, deputy secretary general of the National Security Council (NSC, 國安會) Chiou I-jen (邱義仁), is to be the Cabinet secretary-general, replacing Wea Chi-lin (魏啟林).
Editor in chief of the Taipei Times Antonio Chiang (司馬文武) will replace Chiou as the new deputy secretary-general of the NSC.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development Chen Po-chih (
"New appointments of Cabinet members will be based on their professionalism instead of their party affiliation," Chang said at a press conference after yesterday's Cabinet meeting, adding that he would fulfill the president's ideal of "government for all the people" (
In addition, Chang set goals to initiate the so-called "Chen-Chang administration" -- essentially a minority government. "I hereby proclaim that political stability and economic development will be the Cabinet's top administrative priorities," Chang said, adding that he felt cautious and apprehensive after he was informed about his appointment, which was given on short notice.
"However, I will put all the Cabinet's effort into reinforcing coordination among the Cabinet, the legislature and opposition parties, as well as strengthening cooperation among parties," Chang said.
Chang said that the 2001 national spending plan, which was returned to the Cabinet by the legislature yesterday, would be modified and submitted again as soon as possible.
Expressing his gratitude for Tang's contribution during the past four months, Chang said, "Tang has brought peace and stability to the country [
Tang yesterday morning expressed his sorrow at leaving the Cabinet and modestly called himself a "deserter" (
"I've fought a good fight. I have finished my course and I'm left with only good memories," he said.
During yesterday's Cabinet meeting, the controversy over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant was put on the agenda for discussion, but Chang postponed it.
However, according to DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), Chang is unlikely to announce the continuation of the plant's construction since he is a DPP member.
Super Typhoon Kong-rey is the largest cyclone to impact Taiwan in 27 years, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Kong-rey’s radius of maximum wind (RMW) — the distance between the center of a cyclone and its band of strongest winds — has expanded to 320km, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. The last time a typhoon of comparable strength with an RMW larger than 300km made landfall in Taiwan was Typhoon Herb in 1996, he said. Herb made landfall between Keelung and Suao (蘇澳) in Yilan County with an RMW of 350km, Chang said. The weather station in Alishan (阿里山) recorded 1.09m of
NO WORK, CLASS: President William Lai urged people in the eastern, southern and northern parts of the country to be on alert, with Typhoon Kong-rey approaching Typhoon Kong-rey is expected to make landfall on Taiwan’s east coast today, with work and classes canceled nationwide. Packing gusts of nearly 300kph, the storm yesterday intensified into a typhoon and was expected to gain even more strength before hitting Taitung County, the US Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center said. The storm is forecast to cross Taiwan’s south, enter the Taiwan Strait and head toward China, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The CWA labeled the storm a “strong typhoon,” the most powerful on its scale. Up to 1.2m of rainfall was expected in mountainous areas of eastern Taiwan and destructive winds are likely
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday at 5:30pm issued a sea warning for Typhoon Kong-rey as the storm drew closer to the east coast. As of 8pm yesterday, the storm was 670km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) and traveling northwest at 12kph to 16kph. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 162kph and gusts of up to 198kph, the CWA said. A land warning might be issued this morning for the storm, which is expected to have the strongest impact on Taiwan from tonight to early Friday morning, the agency said. Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島) canceled classes and work
KONG-REY: A woman was killed in a vehicle hit by a tree, while 205 people were injured as the storm moved across the nation and entered the Taiwan Strait Typhoon Kong-rey slammed into Taiwan yesterday as one of the biggest storms to hit the nation in decades, whipping up 10m waves, triggering floods and claiming at least one life. Kong-rey made landfall in Taitung County’s Chenggong Township (成功) at 1:40pm, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The typhoon — the first in Taiwan’s history to make landfall after mid-October — was moving north-northwest at 21kph when it hit land, CWA data showed. The fast-moving storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 184kph, with gusts of up to 227kph, CWA data showed. It was the same strength as Typhoon Gaemi, which was the most
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