High hopes as Jiang Yi-huah grabs the premier's reins in Taiwan
It's only day one, but speculation about the new leader's chances in island's 2016 presidential election is already flying thick and fast
Taiwan's new premier, Jiang Yi-huah, was officially sworn in on Monday, becoming the island's third most powerful man and a potential frontrunner for the 2016 presidential election.
Analysts said his appointment was a blow to the chances of Vice-President Wu Den-yih and New Taipei Mayor Eric Chu Li-luan, also seen as possible Kuomintang candidates for president.
But they said Jiang, 52, would have to improve Taiwan's sagging economy and introduce reforms - including a controversial pension system and the commissioning of the island's fourth nuclear power plant - in order to have a chance at running for the island's top post.
Jiang, who has a doctorate in political science from Yale, led other cabinet members yesterday in a swearing-in ceremony supervised by President Ma Ying-jeou at the Presidential Office, replacing the former cabinet led by financial expert Sean Chen.
Chen resigned late last month for "health reasons" at a time when Ma's approval rating had plunged to a low of 13 per cent following mounting public criticism of his government's failure to address the island's persistent economic woes and declining living standards.
Ma said yesterday the new cabinet should "do the best job possible" to boost the economy. He also asked it to quickly generate concrete results, given his administration's poor showing in public opinion polls.
Jiang's heading the cabinet now raises the possibility of his becoming another potential frontrunner from the KMT for the 2016 race