The political furore over the president's "state affairs fund" and the Taipei mayor's "special allowance fund" illustrates the need for constitutional reform, said the former vice chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council.
"Political infighting targeting the president would be less brutal if the government system were changed to a parliamentary system," said Chen Ming-tong (陳明通), a professor at National Taiwan University's Graduate Institute of National Development. "It is equally important that the administration establishes a better system to tackle problems caused by justice in transition."
Chen made the remarks at a forum held by the Taiwan Thinktank to discuss the controversies involving President Chen Shui-bian's (
The forum is the fourth of a series of panel discussions on problems caused by transitional justice.
As Taiwan has transformed itself from an authoritarian to a democratic state, Chen Ming-tong said the problem caused by the president's and Ma's expense funds were a perfect example of justice in transition.
During a transitional period, Chen Ming-tong said justice does not necessarily have to be "absolutely fair" but can reach the level that is "unsatisfactory but acceptable."
He proposed that those involved in the fund controversies apologize to defuse political tensions. Those guilty of inappropriate accounting, but who did not pocket any money, must be granted amnesty, he said.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said that the controversy involving the two political leaders' expense funds should be handled at the same time and with the same standards.
In the national interest, Kuan called on Ma to treat the controversy involving his "special allowance fund" as a case of transitional justice rather than a personal legal matter.
She was referring to Ma's donation of funds to charities on Friday. Ma said he had decided to donate a sum equal to a portion of his special allowance in order to quell criticism that he had embezzled funds.
Meanwhile, Kenneth Lin (林向愷), an economics professor at National Taiwan University, criticized the Cabinet's new measure requiring receipts detailing all expenditures from the funds as "inflexible" and "a step backward."
Chen Chun-kai (
It is important to establish a system that prevents officials from engaging in corruption, but it is equally important to keep the system practical, feasible and efficient, he said.
"You spend so much time collecting receipts that you have very little time left to do other things," he said. "It is an unbelievable waste of time."
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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