Only about one-quarter of sports associations that received government funding have met a deadline to turn in financial statements, as stipulated in a 2017 amendment to the National Sports Act (國民體育法), the New Power Party (NPP) said yesterday.
At a news conference in Taipei to mark National Sports Day, the party urged the government to continue sports reform, after Taiwanese athletes won two gold, four silver and six bronze medals at the Tokyo Olympics last month, the nation’s best performance since the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
It has been four years since the government started asking publicly funded sports associations to submit financial statements, but few of them have made their financial situations transparent, NPP caucus whip Chiu Hsien-chih (邱顯智) said.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The Sports Administration allocates about NT$3.5 billion (US$126.12 million) annually to 71 sports associations, but only 17 of them filed financial statements before their deadline, Chiu said.
Moreover, some groups have failed to meet other standards, he added.
The management of baseball, tennis, badminton and swimming associations in February were convicted of manipulating board elections by collecting signatures and identification information from non-members, Chiu said.
Chief secretaries at ice hockey, tennis and badminton associations were convicted of fraud or forgery, he said, adding that Article 39 of the National Sports Act does not prevent convicted individuals from assuming management positions in sports associations.
The financial reporting of some associations was substandard, as, for example, the tennis association’s statement does not explain some obscure items, Chiu said.
NPP Legislator Claire Wang (王婉諭) called for a comprehensive review of a compensation program for athletes on national teams.
Professional athletes are compensated NT$30,000 per month, but other athletes only receive NT$15,500, with many being forced to take unpaid leave or quit their jobs to participate in training programs, Wang said.
“The meager government funding for non-full-time athletes should stop immediately,” she said, adding that many Olympic athletes are facing “financial difficulties.”
Associations offering athletes two-way contracts to protect their rights during training or international competitions are rare, Wang said.
Most athletes only sign an affidavit that stipulates their obligations and responsibilities, she said.
NPP Chairwoman and deputy caucus whip Chen Jiau-hua (陳椒華) said that the party would propose an amendment to Article 39 that would set a term limit for chairpersons and other key officials at sports associations.
This would prevent associations from being controlled by certain individuals, she said.
While the 2017 amendment states that chairpersons, board directors, supervisors and secretaries cannot use their positions for their own benefit or that of other stakeholders, the article is still too vague, she said.
“The Sports Administration should clearly stipulate criteria for a conflict of interest and legal consequences in case a sports association contravenes the regulations. It should also list the individuals with whom sports associations are prohibited from engaging in commercial transactions,” Chen said, referring to a case from 2019.
At the time, prosecutors launched an investigation into the softball association after Winner Express (運佳旅行社), a travel agency that helped arrange a trip of the national women’s softball team to the US, allegedly overcharged the association.
The firm was run by Tsai Yi-fan (蔡逸凡), a son of Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee vice chairman Tsai Szu-chuen (蔡賜爵).
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