Belatedly, doctors in Taiwan are debating the pros and cons of using generic medicine in their prescriptions.They are of course much younger than those who got medical degrees while Taiwan was still under Japanese colonial rule and shortly thereafter.They certainly do not know a very good story about lowly aspirin – whose generic name is APC – which was told and retold by doctors who are now all retired.
Once upon a time, there was a very stupid medical student whose father was a wealthy general practitioner in a remote town in Japan.The father wanted the son to take over his practice, but the youngster couldn’t be graduated after spending twice the years needed to qualify.Finally, at the repeated behest of the father, the son went to his dean of the medical school in Tokyo and asked for help.The dean was kind.He decided to let the student graduate on one condition:Prescribe APC and APC only.The student promised to do so, was graduated, and went back to his hometown to take over his father’s practice.
Whoever visited his clinic received the same prescription: APC, which is the acronym of “aspirin,” “phenacetin,” and “caffeine.”His dean knew the student was no good but the aspirin prescription could hurt nobody, if it might not help cure anybody.His patients didn’t know they were just given aspirin, but strangely enough, almost all of them were cured after one or two visits.In time, the stupid student acquired the fame as the best doctor in town.
In the meantime, the dean retired and started a tour of cities where his former students were practicing.He came to the town of his stupid student.There was a sumptuous dinner party given by the alumni in honor of their former dean.Before the dinner started, the retired professor wanted to know who the best doctor in town was.A name was mentioned, but he had long forgotten the name of his stupid student.
All the doctors then began enjoying a grand fish banquet, but unfortunately, the dean had a fish bone stuck in the throat.No matter how hard all the doctors tried, they couldn’t get it out.Exhausted, one doctor suggested that the best doctor in town be sent for.All were agreed and a restaurant waiter was dispatched to the clinic of the APC doctor, who dared not attend the party for fear he might be exposed as the one time stupid student.He agonized while the waiter was waiting at his clinic.He could not break his vow to the dean.However, he would be the laughing stock of the town if he kept his promise.In the end, he obeyed the dean’s order.He gave an envelope to the waiter and asked him to go back to the restaurant.The waiter came back alone to hand over the envelope to the doctors looking forward to meeting the best of their colleagues.Everybody was curious to know what was inside the envelope.Was there a secret drug that could get the fish bone out?The answer came shortly.The old professor tore open the envelope, and lo and behold, there was an APC prescription!The dean remembered his old familiar stupid student at once.He had a very hearty laugh.As he laughed, he swallowed the fish bone down.He was cured.The stupid student was the best doctor in town after all,
I do not know whether President has heard of this aspirin story.But he sure is letting his new premier Chang Chun-hsiung play the APC doctor.
Chang was obedience itself.Shortly after inauguration in 2000, President Chen tried to keep his campaign promise to keep Taiwan green.He wanted to call off Taiwan’s fourth nuclear power plant project, which was launched by the Kuomintang government.Lien Chan, the then chairman of the opposition Kuomintang, insisted that the project be carried out to supply Taiwan with enough power.He met Chen at the Office of the President, where the latter gave personal and official assurances that the project would continue.As Lien stepped out of the meeting, Chang Chun-hsiung, the premier, declared work on the nuclear power plant would be suspended.
Like that stupid Japanese student, the premier was obediently doing what he was told.But he wasn’t as lucky as the APC doctor.The opposition alliance of the Kuomintang and the People First Party, irate over Chen’s betrayal, started calling for his impeachment. Chen found himself facing a tremendous crisis but let his premier bear the brunt.After months of political turmoil, Chen had to have work resumed to weather the crisis.Chang was declared a persona non grata at the Legislative Yuan, where the opposition controlled a majority.He was then fired, and Taiwan had to pay a heavy penalty for the suspension of work to foreign contractors of the project and suffer concomitant losses incurred in the delay for five years, which topped an estimated NT$100 billion.The project has been rescheduled for completion by 2010.
President Chen is confronting a personal crisis.He is a lame duck, fighting for survival after he steps down in May next year.First lady Wu Shu-chen, indicted on last November 3, is standing trial for corruption.The president was not indicted, for he is immune to prosecution, but was regarded as an unindicted co-defendant who will be formally charged with corruption on leaving office.Should Kuomintang candidate for president Ma Ying-jeou win in 2008, Chen would face indictment and trial.Chen might wind up in jail like Chun Doo Hwan in South Korea.
That’s why Chen installed Chang as premier again, hoping his yes-man would get lucky this time around and miraculously remove his fish bone out of his throat.
（本文刊載於96.05.21 China Post第4版，本文代表作者個人意見）