Amendments to the Act on Recusal of Public Servants Due to Conflict of Interest (公職人員利益衝突迴避法), which would introduce a fine of up to NT$6 million (US$200,521) for public officials who use their influence to benefit themselves or others, yesterday passed the third reading at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei.
While the act defined public servants as those covered by the Act on Property-Declaration by Public Servants (公職人員財產申報法), the amendment specifically defines them as the president, the vice president, agency and deputy agency heads at all levels of the government, heads of public schools, judges and prosecutors.
The amendment says that assistants to publicly elected officials are governed by the act, no matter their level, and that assistants or employers who have undue quid-pro-quo agreements with the agencies they work for or scrutinize — including transactions, subsidies, renting or contracting work — risk a maximum fine equivalent to the amount of money involved in the agreements.
Assistants to publicly elected officials are those hired using taxpayers’ money, unionized assistants and any other assistants under the direct supervision of elected officials, it says.
The amendment would exempt officials who make or receive subsidies or payments that are used to improve social welfare or that conform to the rules of fair market competition.
Officials should not use their rights, opportunities or methods to benefit themselves or others, it says.
When faced with a potential conflict of interest, public officials should avoid any involvement and are required to report the conflict to the agency they serve, while civil servants are to report to their governing agencies, the amendment says.
Public officials who are involved in a conflict of interest would face a fine of NT$100,000 to NT$2 million, which is to be raised to between NT$150,000 and NT$3 million and could be repeated if they refuse to withdraw from a conflict of interest after being ordered to do so, it says.
Officials found to have exploited their positions to benefit themselves or others would face a fine of NT$300,000 to NT$6 million, the amendment says.
Persons of interests would be obligated to provide any information requested by the Control Yuan, the Ministry of Justice or the agencies they serve, while those who refuse to comply without legitimate reason or who provide false information would be subjected to a fine of NT$20,000 to NT$200,000, it says.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
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