As Premier Yu Shyi-kun officially approved the resignations of Minister of Finance Lee Yung-san (李庸三) and Council of Agriculture Chairman Fan Chen-tsung (范振宗) yesterday, Yu said that he needs time to find their successors.
In the meantime, Vice Minister of Finance Sam Wang (
The Cabinet is scheduled to hold an agricultural summit on Saturday to discuss agricultural financing and the consolidation of grassroots credit units, after which it may make an announcement on who will fill the vacant positions.
The Cabinet may also wait until after the Dec. 7 Taipei and Kaohsiung mayoral and city council elections to make the announcement.
Yu, paying his respects to the late mother of the editor in chief of the Liberty Times at the municipal Taipei No. 1 Funeral Parlor (
"I don't think their absence will pose any problem for the summit because the date has been set and the invitations have been sent out," he said. "Besides, their [Lee's and Fan's] deputies are supposed to take up their job when they're away."
Leading candidates to succeed Fan include Hsinchu County Commissioner Lin Kuang-hua (
Fan said yesterday that he had recommended Lin Kuang-hua to the premier as a potential successor.
Chen Chih-yuan dismissed media speculation that he is on the list of potential successors.
"It's impossible," he said. "Nobody has ever contacted me about the matter. Besides, what do you expect me to tell my immediate supervisor and colleagues if I take up the job?" he said.
Chen also took the opportunity to call on the media to cool down.
"As the premier said, he needs some time to think about it and find the most appropriate person. Until then, all this is mere media speculation," he said.
Chen was promoted to his current position on Aug. 5 from commission member, a position he had held since February last year.
Potential successors to Lee include Minister without Portfolio Hu Sheng-cheng (
While Hu refused to comment on personnel changes, Sean Chen dismissed speculation that the government has contacted him regarding the vacancy.
Sean Chen's visit to Lin Tzong-yeong yesterday morning prompted speculation about whether the two were discussing the Cabinet reshuffle.
Chen, however, said that their talk "had nothing to do with the new position."
Wang, who answered to the legislature's finance committee on behalf of Lee Yung-san, said that he knows nothing about potential candidates to replace Lee and that no one has approached him about taking over the position.
Also see story:
DEATH THREAT: A MAC official said that it has urged Beijing to avoid creating barriers that would impede exchanges across the Strait, but it continues to do so People should avoid unnecessary travel to China after Beijing issued 22 guidelines allowing its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death “Taiwan independence separatists,” the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday as it raised its travel alert for China, including Hong Kong and Macau, to “orange.” The guidelines published last week “severely threaten the personal safety of Taiwanese traveling to China, Hong Kong and Macau,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a news conference in Taipei. “Following a comprehensive assessment, the government considers it necessary to elevate the travel alert to orange from yellow,” Liang said. Beijing has
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. The world’s second-largest economy is beset by a debt crisis in the property sector, persistently low consumption and high unemployment among young people. Policymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall
CIVIL DEFENSE: More reservists in alternative service would help establish a sound civil defense system for use in wartime and during natural disasters, Kuma Academy’s CEO said While a total of 120,000 reservists are expected to be called up for alternative reserve drills this year, compared with the 6,505 drilled last year, the number has been revised to 58,000 due to a postponed training date, Deputy Minster of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said. In principle, the ministry still aims to call up 120,000 reservists for alternative reserve drills next year, he said, but the actual number would not be decided later until after this year’s evaluation. The increase follows a Legislative Yuan request that the Ministry of the Interior address low recruitment rates, which it made while reviewing
DETERRENCE: Along with US$500 million in military aid and up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees, the bill would allocate US$400 million to countering PRC influence The US House of Representatives on Friday approved an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025 that includes US$500 million in military aid for Taiwan. The legislation, which authorizes funding for the US Department of State, US foreign operations and related programs for next year, passed 212-200 in the Republican-led House. The bill stipulates that the US would provide no less than US$500 million in foreign military financing for Taiwan to enhance deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and offer Taipei up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for the same purpose. The funding would be made available under the US’ Foreign Military