Cablegate: New Finance Minister Named

VZCZCXRO5802
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH
DE RUEHIN #2266 1810900
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 300900Z JUN 06
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0963
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 5366
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 7907
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 7797
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 6575
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 0221
RUEHGZ/AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU 9403
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 1312
RUEHSH/AMCONSUL SHENYANG 5274
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC

UNCLAS TAIPEI 002266

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE PASS USTR
USTR FOR WINTER AND WINELAND,
TREASURY PASS TO FEDERAL RESERVE/BOARD OF GOVERNORS,
AND SAN FRANCISCO FRB/TERESA CURRAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV ETRD ECON PREL TW
SUBJECT: NEW FINANCE MINISTER NAMED

REF: A. A. TAIPEI 00261

B. B. TAIPEI 1462

1. On January 29, Premier Su Tseng-chang appointed Ho
Chih-Chin, 54, Chairman of the Economics Department at
National Taiwan University as Finance Minister to replace
Joseph Lyu (Jye-Cherng). Lyu has only been in the position
for five months (ref B) and is the first Ministerial change
by Su since he took office January 25 this year. Lyu will be
reassigned as a Minister without Portfolio in the Executive
Yuan.

2. Premier Su praised the work of Lyu in the areas of
financial reform and public securities administration.
However, news reports paint Lyu as an ineffective Finance
Minister who avoided the press and accomplished little during
his tenure. Press reports highlighted recent scandals on his
watch, including insider trading charges involving Taiwan
Development Corporation and President Chen Shui-bian's
son-in-law, and the recent battle over management control of
state-owned Mega Holdings Financial Holding Company as
contributing to Lyu's downfall.

3. Ho is an expert in taxation and assisted former finance
minister Lin Chuan on tax reform policy, specializing in the
reform of inheritance and gift tax. According to news
reports, Ho, a former U.S. citizen, worked for the U.S.
Internal Revenue Service as an economist from 1990-2003,
specializing in tax reform. Ho also served as senior
economist at the U.S. Department of Justice from 1990-1998.
He gave up his U.S. citizenship when he returned to Taiwan in
2003 to teach at National Taiwan Univesity. He earned a
Bachelor's degree in Economics in 1974 from National Taiwan
University (his classmate was Chen Shui-Bian) and a doctorate
in economics in 1987 from the University of Michigan.
KEEGAN

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