Liu Chao-shiuan Reported to Become the New Premier

Taipei, April 9, 2008 (CENS)--Liu Chao-shiuan, president of Soochow University and former vice premier, has been widely reported to have accepted the offer of president-elect Ma Ying-jeou to become the premier.

Liu has agreed to become the administrative chief under Ma's government after repeated requests of latter, according to insiders.

Soochow University has reportedly begun to look for Liu's successor. Liu's four-year term for the presidency is scheduled for expiration on July 31, but Liu has yet to accept the offer of the school's board of directors and sign the contract for another term.

Liu has close ties with both Ma and vice president-elect Vincent Siew. He and Ma were both Cabinet members under Lien Chan, former vice president and premier, serving as the minister of transportation and communications and minister of justice, respectively. Latter, he was appointed as the vice premier by then premier Siew. It was he who recommended Ma to choose Siew as the latter's running mate. Over the past years, he has been a close advisor to Ma when the latter served as the Kuomintang chairman and during the president campaign.

Liu, 65, had abundant experience in both the public sector and academic field, capable of having the new administrative team run on track instantly. With a doctorate degree in chemistry, the University of Toronto, he boasts a long array of prominent stints, including professor and president of National Tsin Hua University, minister of transportation and communication, chairman of the National Science Council, vice premier, and presently president of Soochow University.