New premier vows to enact comprehensive reforms

2016/05/23

Taiwan’s new Premier Lin Chuan accepted the seal of office May 20 from his predecessor Chang San-cheng at a handover ceremony at the Executive Yuan in Taipei, vowing that he and his Cabinet would communicate sincerely with the people, strive to achieve broad-based consensuses on major issues, and initiate the comprehensive reforms anticipated by the public.

“We have heard the voices of the people and their expectations for the new government. We hope to dispel the sense of loss felt by the public as well as address the problem of Taiwan’s economic stagnation,” Lin said at the ceremony.

The premier identified insufficient investment as a key reason for Taiwan’s high unemployment rate and low wage levels. Lin said the Cabinet would seek to boost domestic investment by focusing on three key areas, signing free trade agreements and joining regional economic and trade organizations; cultivating local industries based on Taiwan’s distinct regional cultures; and enacting the new government’s five industrial development objectives, which include fostering the growth of industrial clusters in areas such as biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, national defense and green technology.

Lin stressed that the members of his Cabinet must demonstrate four major qualities to meet the public’s expectations, namely the abilities to communicate effectively and solve problems practically; identify policy priorities based on the principles of innovation, job creation, equitable wealth distribution and sustainable development; achieve multiple policy goals using limited resources; and foster collaboration.

A University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign-educated economist, Lin began his professional career in academia before accumulating extensive experience in the public and private sectors. He was head of the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics under the Executive Yuan between 2000 and 2002, and was finance minister from 2002 to 2006.

The Cabinet officials now responsible for managing Taiwan’s foreign relations, maintaining stable ties with mainland China, and guiding the nation’s economic development are, respectively, Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lee, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chang Hsiao-yueh and Minister of Economic Affairs Lee Chih-kung.

A seasoned diplomat, David Lee has previously served as Taiwan’s representative to Australia, Canada, the European Union and the U.S. He has also been chairman of the Coordination Council for North American Affairs under the MOFA, deputy foreign minister and director-general of the now defunct Government Information Office.

Chang is also an experienced diplomat and was the nation’s first female vice foreign minister. She previously served as Taiwan’s representative in Australia, the Netherlands and the U.K. as well as chairperson of the MOFA’s Coordination Council for North American Affairs.

Lee Chih-kung worked as a professor of engineering science and ocean engineering at National Taiwan University in Taipei prior to his appointment as Taiwan’s new economics minister. He has extensive industrial development experience, having served as deputy head of the Industrial Technology Research Institute and executive director of the Institute for Information Industry.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=244915&ctNode=2194&mp=9)