Within a span of eight months, Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) was promoted from DPP lawmaker to deputy secretary-general of the Presidential Office in May of last year. He has since been promoted again, and will assume the position of Cabinet spokesperson on Feb. 1.
Cho, seen as the top aide and long-time follower of incoming premier Frank Hsieh (
PHOTO: YEH CHIH-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
"Viewing Cho as merely Hsieh's man is not entirely true," said an official with the Presidential Office who asked not to be named.
"President Chen Shui-bian (
In last year's presidential campaign, Cho served as deputy manager of Chen and Vice President Annette Lu's (呂秀蓮) campaign.
Cho's main job was to integrate support of pro-DPP local factions, seek grassroots votes and even solicit support from the opposition, said the official.
"Cho accomplished his job with high efficiency, which met Chen's expectations," the official said. "He therefore won the trust of the president. To cultivate young talent, the president decided to quickly promote Cho," he added.
Noting his hard-working nature, Cho once said "I lost 7kg in three months during the [presidential] campaign."
However, unavoidably, Cho, who still refers to Hsieh as "teacher" in person, has been benefiting from Hsieh's endorsement.
Cho, 49, earned a bachelor's degree in law from National Chunghsing University. During the 1980s, he worked as Hsieh's assistant when Hsieh served as a Taipei City councilor and then as a legislator. Cho's job at the time was to preside over constituency services and campaign activities.
He then served two terms as a Taipei City councilor from 1990-1998 and two terms as a legislator from 1998 to last year.
In 2001, when President Chen became chairman of the DPP and reformed the party, he appointed many young politicians to head the party's departments.
Cho became the head of the party's social development department, taking responsibility for grassroots organization nationwide.
After the presidential inauguration last May, Cho was nominated by Chen as deputy secretary general of the Presidential Office.
Serving as Chen's assistant, Cho's job was to look after domestic affairs, which involved integrating Presidential Office activities with those of civil groups.
In addition, he was also in charge of Chen's local visit itinerary, and assisted him in communicating with academics and other influential people of different fields.
"Since the job suited Cho's background and experience, he did very well," said chairman of the Council of Hakka Affairs and a close friend of Cho -- Luo Wen-jia (
When leaving the presidential office, Cho told reporters "I always keep alert and often sleep in office because Chen or Vice President Lu could need me any time."
Cho also told reporters "I would like to be an MP3 player as Cabinet spokesman," meaning that the government, like music, should communicate with the public in a soft and enjoyable tone, rather than a harsh one.
‘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