President Chen Shui-bian (
The Presidential Office is due to publish the list of senior advisors and national policy advisors to the president today when the one-year tenure for incumbent positions expires.
Most of the 100-plus advisors will stay on, sources close to the president said, adding that a dozen or so will be removed for possessing dual citizenship.
King, a long-time independence advocate, will remain at her post, they said.
The tough-talking advisor created uproar during her recent trips back to Taiwan during which she refused to count herself as a citizen of the Republic of China.
"The ROC has long ceased to exist," she said. The remarks outraged opposition lawmakers who have since pressed for her dismissal. Pro-independence activists, on the other hand, have come to her defense. Wary of entering the row, the president has said he does not always agree with his advisors but respects their freedom of speech.
Some DPP lawmakers have suggested that King must take the initiative to tender her resignation, while others have said she will never quit voluntarily.
Prominent industrialists Nita Ing (
The president is to leave certain posts open to allow some aides to resume their posts after taking measures to comply with nationality guidelines.
Chen Chao-chuan (陳朝傳), owner of Shihlin Paper Co, who has been accused of sexual harassment, will probably be dropped for good.
Created in 1948, both classes of aide have traditionally been filled by senior retired officials to keep their prestige aglow -- if only nominally.
Only a handful of advisors keep an office inside the Presidential Office, and there are no regular meetings between the president and the advisors.
Although seldom consulted, a senior advisor receives NT$201,960 in monthly salary as does a vice premier. A national policy advisor receives NT$179,520, the same as a Cabinet minister.
Only 45 advisors are on the government payroll, while the rest perform their services voluntarily.
Shi Wen-long (許文龍), president of Chi Mei Corp, who caused an uproar by telling a Japanese cartoonist that some Taiwan women volunteered to serve as prostitutes for the Japanese army during World War II, will be retained.
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
WARNING: China has stepped up harassment of foreign vessels after its new regulation took effect last month, an official said, citing an incident in the Diaoyutai Islands The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday linked China’s seizure of a Taiwanese fishing vessel illegally operating in its territorial waters to Beijing’s new regulation authorizing the China Coast Guard to seize boats in waters it claims. Chinese officials boarded and then seized a Taiwanese fishing vessel operating near China’s coast close to Kinmen County late on Tuesday and took it to a Chinese port, the CGA said. The Penghu-registered squid fishing vessel Da Jin Man No. 88 (大進滿88) was boarded and seized by China Coast Guard east-northeast of Liaoluo Bay (料羅灣), 17.5 nautical miles (32.4km) from Taiwan’s restricted waters off Kinmen,
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
As eight basketball-playing international students appealed to the Taiwanese basketball industry after they were excluded from the draft of an upcoming new league merging the P.League+ and the T1 League, the new league’s preparatory committee spokesperson Chang Shu-jen (張樹人) yesterday said the committee would tomorrow discuss the supplementary measures and whether the international students can join the draft. The students on Tuesday called for support on their right to play in the upcoming new league, after a merger involving the two leagues impacted their eligibility for the draft. The international players from the University Basketball Association (UBA), led by first pick prospect