Taipei  - Taiwan president-elect Ma Ying-jeou has appointed a former China policy head as the secretary-general of the National Security Council, Ma's office said Monday.

"The president-elect has appointed Su Chi as the secretary-general of the National Security Council, and three other people as Su's deputies," said Lo Chih-chiang, spokesman of Ma's office.

Su, 60, former head of the Mainland Affairs Council, the island's top China policy planning body, has served as Ma's chief national security adviser since Ma ran for president and beat his Democratic Progressive Party opponent Frank Hsieh to win the race in March.

Su, with a doctorate degree in political science, returned to academia after the Nationalist Party or Kuomintang (KMT) lost power to the DPP in 2000. He worked as government spokesman and deputy secretary-general of the Presidential Office during former president Lee Teng-hui's tenure. He also served as the KMT parliamentarian at-large between February 2005 and January 2008.

The three others designated deputy secretaries-general are Ho Shih-yin, professor of political science at National Chengchi University; retired Vice Admiral Lee Hai-tung, and Kao Chang, professor of public administration at Tunghua University.

The Ma government will be officially sworn in on May 20. (dpa)