A “national debt clock” unveiled by the Ministry of Finance in Taipei yesterday quickly ran into opposition from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers who said it underestimates the true size of the nation’s debt by NT$15 trillion (US$497.15 billion).
The figure, mounted on a running display at the ministry’s headquarters, was apparently modeled after the prominent US National Debt Clock in New York City. The ministry said that the clock was installed to remind other government agencies to crack down on waste.
The display, which is to be updated on the seventh day every month, shows that as of Tuesday last week, the central government owed about NT$4.32 trillion in debt. The figure roughly translates into NT$197,000 per person.
The figure accounts for about 32 percent of Taiwan’s GDP, with a ceiling pegged at 40 percent. Senior officials insist the sum is relatively low compared with other East Asian countries.
“Not only are we still within regulations, but we are still at a reasonable range compared with other countries,” Deputy Minister of Finance William Tseng (曾銘宗) said after being questioned about the new clock.
However, DPP lawmakers said that the figure, which only includes the amount of debt held by the central government, fails to include other forms of public debt, including unfunded hidden liabilities and obligations from local governments.
The difference is about NT$15 trillion, DPP lawmakers said, calling the difference “staggering.”
“The new national debt clock ... doesn’t show the true extent of our national debt,” DPP Legislator Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said.
Calculations by DPP lawmakers showed that every Taiwanese owed about NT$900,000 on average.
They said other unfunded liabilities included public and military retirement pensions, national health and labor insurance programs, and road subsidies.
Economists say the proportion of debt will continue to increase amid growing expenditures, government officials say increased tax revenues will lessen the impact.
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
There are 77 incidents of Taiwanese travelers going missing in China between January last year and last month, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. More than 40 remain unreachable, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday. Most of the reachable people in the more than 30 other incidents were allegedly involved in fraud, while some had disappeared for personal reasons, Luo said. One of these people is Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒), a 22-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung who went missing while visiting China in August. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office last month said in a news statement that he was under investigation
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
An aviation jacket patch showing a Formosan black bear punching Winnie the Pooh has become popular overseas, including at an aviation festival held by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force at the Ashiya Airbase yesterday. The patch was designed last year by Taiwanese designer Hsu Fu-yu (徐福佑), who said that it was inspired by Taiwan’s countermeasures against frequent Chinese military aircraft incursions. The badge shows a Formosan black bear holding a Republic of China flag as it punches Winnie the Pooh — a reference to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) — who is dressed in red and is holding a honey pot with
RSS