The Taiwan Higher Education Union yesterday asked Minister of Education Wu Se-hwa (吳思華) to promise that he would not accept any position offered by a private university after he steps down on May 20, and urged the Ministry of Education to quickly establish a “revolving door” policy for former ministry officials.
Union organization department director Lin Po-yi (林柏儀) said that four former ministers of education and several other former officials have moved on from public service to become presidents, board directors and adjunct professors at private universities over the past 20 years.
“These former officials, who receive a pension from the ministry and a salary from private universities, function as ‘door gods.’ They use their connections at the ministry to help universities secure government funding,” Lin said.
Photo: Wu Po-hsuan, Taipei Times
During a protest at the ministry’s compound in Taipei, union members performed a skit depicting three major problems ailing the nation’s higher education system.
In addition to former ministry officials serving as “door gods,” current ministry employees bail out private universities to carve out positions for themselves at the institutions after they retire from public service, the union said.
The third affliction is Wu, the union said, adding that he needs to implement a revolving door policy banning former ministry officials from taking positions at private universities.
Furthermore, the ministry should reduce funding given to any private university found to have misused government money, the union said.
Ministry Department of Personnel Deputy Director Kuo Shu-ying (郭樹英) said that funding for private universities is allocated based on decisions made by a committee of experts who are not affiliated with the ministry.
The experts use strict and objective standards to evaluate proposals submitted by universities, which must provide a detailed plan on how they plan to achieve their objectives, she said.
The ministry has mechanisms to oversee use of funds and the ministry’s funding is supervised by the Legislative Yuan, she added.
The Civil Servant Service Act (公務人員服務法) only bans public employees from serving on the boards or taking positions in for-profit businesses, Guo said, adding that it does not ban civil servants from working for non-profit organizations, such as private universities.
The Ministry of Civil Service in 2000 proposed legislation to ban civil servants from taking jobs related to the field in which they worked within two years after leaving government employment, particularly businesses they dealt with in the five years prior to exiting public service, Kuo said.
The legislation has yet to be enacted, she added.
Measures have been taken to minimize damage from Chinese espionage, the Ministry of National Defense said on Monday, in response to an alleged plan to deliver a Chinook helicopter to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army. The Chinese-language CTWANT magazine earlier in the day reported that a lieutenant colonel surnamed Hsieh (謝) was approached by Chinese officers with an offer to evacuate his family to Thailand in the event of a cross-strait conflict. In exchange, Hsieh was asked to fly a CH-47F Chinook helicopter to a Chinese aircraft carrier in the Taiwan Strait, the magazine said. Hsieh initially declined, but accepted after he was
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
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
CHINA illness surge: Of 88 travelers from China, Hong Kong and Macau with respiratory symptoms who were encouraged to get tested upon arrival, 70.6% had the flu Two hundred and sixty people with COVID-19 were hospitalized and 31 deaths related to the virus were reported last week — the highest numbers in four weeks, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, adding that cases are expected to peak next month. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said that of the 260 people hospitalized last week with moderate to severe COVID-19, 98 percent had not received the Omicron XBB.1.5-adapted COVID-19 vaccine. Among the people hospitalized this year, 78 percent were aged 65 or older, while most of the those who were hospitalized or died have or had
RSS