◎ Zaimi
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan's Legislative Yuan English resume, the degree field was changed from S.J.D. to J.D. Jiang Wanan stated that the English resume was translated by an outsourced vendor from the Legislative Yuan. The information he provided when he served as a legislator in the ninth and tenth terms was correct. Wei Wenxuan, deputy spokesperson of the Beijing Municipal Government, also explained through the media group that the Chinese degree was always "Doctor of Laws from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law." The English information was translated by a vendor outsourced by the Legislative Yuan based on Chinese information. It has been corrected after notification.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan's English resume in the Legislative Yuan, the degree field was changed from S.J.D. to J.D. The picture shows Jiang Wanan. (Photo by reporter Tian Yuhua)
The problem is not just degree abbreviations, but who has the authority to say what. The dispute involves Jiang Wanan’s personal academic qualifications and Legislative Yuan history page when he was a legislator. The information was not produced by the Beijing City Government, and the page is not managed by the Beijing City Government. However, the deputy spokesperson of the North City Government responded in an official capacity, and should explain the basis of the intervention, as well as whether official manpower, time and administrative contact information would be used.
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If there are city personnel collecting information, contacting the Legislative Yuan, or handling media responses during official business hours, does it involve the distinction between public and private matters: who is assigned the task, what duties are used to handle it, what administrative resources are used, and how these actions are related to municipal responsibilities.
Another level of responsibility lies with the Legislative Yuan. The English resume is translated by a manufacturer entrusted by the Legislative Yuan, and the website is also managed by the Legislative Yuan. So who translated it, when the S.J.D. appeared, when the discrepancy was discovered, who accepted the notice, and what document was used to change it to J.D. should all be answered by the records of the Legislative Yuan.
The Beijing Municipal Government maintains that the original Chinese information is correct and this is a matter that can be directly verified. To clarify, the Chinese academic records actually submitted by the offices of the ninth and tenth Legislators that year should be made public; at the same time, the Legislative Yuan should notify, accept and update records. By comparing the two sets of information, you can tell whether the original information is correct and why different degree abbreviations appear on the English page.
What is more important is who initiated the modification and in what order. Did the Legislative Yuan proactively discover the inconsistency in translation, or did Jiang Wanan himself, the original office staff or the Beijing Municipal Government notify him and then handle it? Was the notice issued before or after outside questioning? These are not facts that can be replaced by "outsourcing translation".
The dispute over Jiang Wanan's academic qualifications when he was a legislator was responded to by the deputy spokesperson of the Beijing Municipal Government in an official capacity. He should explain the job basis for the intervention, as well as whether official manpower, time and administrative contact information were used. The picture shows Wei Wenxuan. (Provided by Taipei City Government)
Separate the responsibilities clearly: the Beijing Municipal Government explains its official actions, the Legislative Yuan explains the translation and modification records of the website, and the original documents answer the academic information itself. Only when records are made public can disputes return to the facts, rather than having different agencies answer questions for each other.
(The author is a retired person)
