Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers yesterday accused government officials, including Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺), of seeking to take advantage of the pension reform and research programs funded by the National Science Council to enrich themselves.
A Cabinet proposal to amend the Act Governing the Recompense for the Discharge of Special Political Appointees (政務人員退職撫卹條例) would increase Jiang’s retirement pension by NT$12 million (US$400,000), DPP Legislator Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) told a press conference.
“While the retirement pay of private and public-sector workers will shrink because of the financial problems plaguing the various pension programs, Jiang will make a fortune after the reform [of the pension system]. This act is like looting a burning house,” Chen said.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kung, Taipei Times
If Jiang retires in 2016, he will have accumulated 25 years of service — having served 17 years as a public school teacher in addition to his years of service in government — which will qualify him for pension payment, Chen said.
The proposed change in the calculation method would boost Jiang’s pension from NT$2.85 million to NT$14.87 million, he added.
Sacrificing others and benefiting oneself is not the right way to carry out pension reform, the lawmaker said.
At a separate news conference, DPP Legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) slammed Cabinet officials for doubling as project leaders in research programs sponsored or funded by the National Science Council, saying it has raised questions about their integrity and ability to focus on government affairs.
Minister of the Interior Lee Hong-yuan (李鴻源), Minister of Education Chiang Wei-ling (蔣偉寧), Atomic Energy Council Minister Tsai Chuen-horng (蔡春鴻), Council for Economic Planning and Development Minister Kuan Chung-min (管中閔), Council of Indigenous Peoples Minister Sun Ta-chuan (孫大川), Department of Health Minister Chiu Wen-ta (邱文達) and Minister Without Portfolio Schive Chi (薛琦) have all served as project leaders for the council’s programs, receiving subsidies of more than NT$15 million after assuming their current posts, Tuan said.
“It seems to me that their current posts are their part-time jobs,” he said, adding that the Cabinet members should resign from these research projects.
In response, National Science Council official Cheng Chung-fen (鄭瓊芬) told the press conference that academics who serve in the government, except those who are posted overseas, can apply for research subsidies, but they are prohibited from receiving payment from the program as long as they are still working for a government agency.
Executive Yuan spokesperson Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) last night called the allegations a “malicious” attempt to “defame” academics-turned-politicians.
It is “disappointing” that the DPP thinks the academics decided to work for the government for the sole purpose of “fattening their purses,” Cheng said.
The proposed amendment to the Act Governing the Recompense for the Discharge of Special Political Appointees was drafted long before the government launched plans to reform the nation’s pension systems, Cheng said.
If the proposed pension reforms were adopted, a professor who taught for 30 years and lives 20 years after retirement could receive a pension of NT$17.46 million in total, Cheng said.
Jiang would have received NT$17.46 million if he continued teaching to complete his 30 years of service in school, higher than the NT$12 million mentioned, Cheng said.
Cheng said Jiang would not be eligible to apply for pension if he leaves the government on May 20, 2016, because his years of service in academia and in government would add up to less than 25 years.
There was no truth to the DPP’s allegations, Cheng said.
A study published by online booking platform Expedia revealed searches for travel to Taipei have ballooned 2,786 percent following the lifting of COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions due to the city being a “designation dupe” for Seoul. The TikTok trend for duping — referring to substituting a designation for a more inexpensive alternative — helped propel interest in Taipei, it said in a consumer survey titled “Unpack ‘24,” which was conducted from September to October in 14 countries. Location dupes are “every bit as delightful as the tried-and-true places travelers love,” Expedia trend tracker Melanie Fish said of the year’s popular alternatives, which
SAFETY IN REGULATION: The proposal states that Chiayi should assess whether it is viable to establish such a district and draft rules to protect clients and sex workers The Chiayi City Council passed a motion yesterday to assess the viability of establishing a regulated red-light district. The council yesterday held its last session of the year, at which its fiscal 2024 budget was approved, along with 61 other proposals. The proposal to assess the viability of establishing a red-light district was put forward by independent Chiayi City Councilor Molly Yen (顏色不分藍綠支持性專區顏色田慎節). The proposal cited 2011 amendments to the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法), which stipulate that city and county governments can pass autonomous regulations on the sex trade to manage the industry and guarantee industry workers’ rights. A ban on the
A small-scale protest that called on the government to cancel its plan to welcome Indian migrant workers in a bid to tackle Taiwan’s labor shortage was held in Taipei yesterday. During the protest, comprised of a few dozen people staged in front of the Presidential Office on Ketagalan Boulevard, the protest’s chief initiator, a woman identified only as “Yuna” said they wanted the central government to reconsider allowing migrant workers from India to enter Taiwan. Most people in Taiwan had little knowledge about the potential plan to allow in Indian migrant workers until a report in the media last month, she
STABILITY AND CHANGE: Flagging in recent polls, Ko this week pledged to maintain President Tsai’s foreign policy, with an emphasis on improving China relations Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday reiterated that he is “deep-green at heart” in response to accusations that he is pivoting his campaign to align closer with the ideology of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the face of flagging polls. Ko made the remark at an agricultural policy conference in Taipei, repeating his comments from an interview with CTS News a day earlier. Ko told the CTS host that he would continue to pursue President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) national defense and foreign policy in general, but with an emphasis on establishing a rapport with
RSS