Fix presidential funds
The Legislative Yuan passed an amendment to Article 99-1 of the Accounting Act (會計法) on Monday amid chaotic protests by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators that resulted in damage to the portrait of Sun Yat-sen (孫中山) behind the speaker’s podium.
The “special allowance funds” used by officials other than the president for discretionary public relations purposes, such as rewards and gifts, and the “special state affairs fund” allocated by the president are essentially the same thing, despite their different names.
Former presidents Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) had disputes over their use of special state affairs funds or special allowance funds, so their cases should be treated equally and people should not take sides.
Amending the act to decriminalize aspects of how the funds are used is the right thing to do.
As long as the budget is properly planned and strictly reviewed, those who have the right to use the funds should do so at their own discretion on the basis of political impartiality, selflessness and mutual trust, to avoid the micromanagement that hinders the functioning of the government.
As both funds come from taxpayer money, they cannot be used to line politicians’ pockets or supplement their salaries.
If the expenses are clearly larger than the budget allowed, it is unlikely that illicit gains have been made.
However, if a politician were to use the funds for private activities that are not subject to scrutiny by lawmakers and the public, their political reputations and careers would be damaged and they might also find themselves in breach of anti-corruption laws.
That is, the decriminalization would not entitle them to act with impunity.
Tien Fong-wen
New Taipei City
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