The Ministry of Audit’s latest report shows that the nation’s 23 state-owned enterprises (SOEs) posted a combined revenue of NT$3.716 trillion (US$118.7 billion) and expenditure of NT$3.477 trillion last year, leaving an annual surplus of NT$239 billion for the year. The report indicates that only three SOEs reported losses last year and that the combined surplus of the 23 SOEs was about 29 percent higher than the NT$184.3 billion estimated surplus in the government’s budget approved by the legislature.
Employees and union representatives of state-run businesses are asking for higher wages, which, they suggest, might encourage their peers in the private sector and benefit the nation’s economy.
The corporatist model in Taiwan’s economy has long endorsed that companies, whether state-run or privately owned, distribute bonuses and pay raises when they are making enough money to share their earnings with employees. The SOEs’ scorecard for last year seemed fantastic and almost everyone would have agreed that a pay raise is accordingly the next move.
However, the public knows this will not happen soon because Cabinet officials last month said that civil servants and SOE employees would not receive pay raises until wage increases were implemented for employees of private enterprises. Several lawmakers are putting enormous effort into pushing for the passage of amendments to four related laws that provide tax incentives to publicly traded companies that share their profits with employees and raise wages.
However, who actually contributed to the national coffers? From the ministry’s report, the central bank made the most money among the 20 profitable SOEs last year. Without its NT$198 billion — 83 percent of total profit — which the bank gained through its forex investments and interest income, Taiwanese SOEs would have made a much smaller contribution.
State utility Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) was next with profits of NT$14.1 billion, compared with the NT$17.5 billion loss it made in the previous year. Although it was Taipower’s first profitable year since 2006 — thanks to falling international prices of some key raw materials for electricity generation — the firm still faced an accumulated deficit of NT$208.4 billion as of the end of last year. In other words, last year’s profit was tiny compared with the firm’s accumulated losses over the years.
In contrast, the ministry’s report shows that refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC), the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) and BankTaiwan Life Insurance Co were the three SOEs that remained unprofitable last year. CPC led the pack with a loss of NT$33 billion, a stark contrast with the NT$17.2 billion in earnings it had forecast for the year. BankTaiwan Life Insurance registered a loss of NT$842 million, a reversal of its previously projected profit of NT$252 million for the year. Meanwhile, the TRA registered losses of NT$3.7 billion last year, after predicting a loss of NT$6.2 billion. What is clear from their lackluster performances is not only heavy deficits, but also persistent inefficiency.
The perennial issue of state firms’ lack of competitiveness is not new. Over the years, the government has repeatedly vowed to reform SOEs, but its pledges are nothing but empty words. The biggest problem facing the government is an inability to overcome obstacles posed by strongly vested interests in state companies, especially with top management positions filled with political appointments to reward government supporters and loyal party figures.
Therefore, without any real action being taken to improve the supervision of SOEs and reform the state firms’ ownership structure and management, Taiwan will have to continue relying on its central bank to make contributions to the treasury every year.
Speaking at the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on May 13, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that democracies must remain united and that “Taiwan’s security is essential to regional stability and to defending democratic values amid mounting authoritarianism.” Earlier that day, Tsai had met with a group of Danish parliamentarians led by Danish Parliament Speaker Pia Kjaersgaard, who has visited Taiwan many times, most recently in November last year, when she met with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office. Kjaersgaard had told Lai: “I can assure you that ... you can count on us. You can count on our support
Denmark has consistently defended Greenland in light of US President Donald Trump’s interests and has provided unwavering support to Ukraine during its war with Russia. Denmark can be proud of its clear support for peoples’ democratic right to determine their own future. However, this democratic ideal completely falls apart when it comes to Taiwan — and it raises important questions about Denmark’s commitment to supporting democracies. Taiwan lives under daily military threats from China, which seeks to take over Taiwan, by force if necessary — an annexation that only a very small minority in Taiwan supports. Denmark has given China a
Many local news media over the past week have reported on Internet personality Holger Chen’s (陳之漢) first visit to China between Tuesday last week and yesterday, as remarks he made during a live stream have sparked wide discussions and strong criticism across the Taiwan Strait. Chen, better known as Kuan Chang (館長), is a former gang member turned fitness celebrity and businessman. He is known for his live streams, which are full of foul-mouthed and hypermasculine commentary. He had previously spoken out against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and criticized Taiwanese who “enjoy the freedom in Taiwan, but want China’s money”
A high-school student surnamed Yang (楊) gained admissions to several prestigious medical schools recently. However, when Yang shared his “learning portfolio” on social media, he was caught exaggerating and even falsifying content, and his admissions were revoked. Now he has to take the “advanced subjects test” scheduled for next month. With his outstanding performance in the general scholastic ability test (GSAT), Yang successfully gained admissions to five prestigious medical schools. However, his university dreams have now been frustrated by the “flaws” in his learning portfolio. This is a wake-up call not only for students, but also teachers. Yang did make a big
RSS