The Examination Yuan decided to amend the government's preferential deposit interest rate for retired civil servants, teachers and soldiers saying that the quota for them to enjoy the 18 percent interest rate should be limited to NT$2 million per person.
"We hope that this new measurement can help build a fairer financial mechanism for all people in the country," Examination Yuan President Yao Chia-wen (姚嘉文) said, while briefing PFP lawmakers about the new policy.
The Examination Yuan, which is responsible for the civil service, said many people feel the special rate is not fair to average citizens.
"While other citizens can only deposit their money with banks at an interest rate of 9 percent or lower, the 18 percent interest rate for retired government officials has been criticized because it benefits a particular social class at the expense of the rest of the country," said Lee Ching-hsiung (
Responding to the criticisms, many teachers and public servants said that the original purpose of the preferential rate was to encourage more people to find jobs in public service.
"The government shouldn't try to take back our rights just because they are short of revenue," leaders of the National Teachers Association said.
The Examination Yuan held meetings to discuss how to amend the preferential rate to follow the spirit of the government's financial reform and then it drew up a draft for making some limits on the rate in the future.
Yao Chia-wen (
"According to our new measurement, 82 percent of the 340,000 public servants, teachers and soldiers who have already retired, will not apply," Yao said.
"But those who have served as public servants, teachers and soldiers since 1995 should adopt the new rate when they retire," he said.
Yao added that the Examination Yuan is willing to hold public hearings, if necessary, to allow experts and officials to make suggestions on the amendment before the end of this month.
A vessel owned by Taiwan’s cargo container shipping company Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp caught fire after an explosion occurred in a container on board while the ship was at the busy Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan in eastern China on Friday. Yang Ming Marine confirmed the incident and said a preliminary investigation found that the explosion occurred in a container on its vessel, the YM Mobility, which reportedly arrived in Ningbo early on Friday morning after its last call in Shanghai. “Immediate fire control measures were taken, and the situation is now under control,” Yang Ming Marine said in a statement. “All crew
The number of foreign students attending Taiwanese universities last year dropped 9.46 percent from 2019, mainly due to a marked decline in the number of Chinese students, the National Audit Office said in a report. Last year, there were 116,038 foreign students — 67,299 degree students and 48,739 non-degree students — a decrease of 12,119, or 9.46 percent, from 128,157 in 2019, the report said. China in 2020 stopped allowing Chinese students to study in Taiwan, saying that COVID-19 pandemic controls and “the cross-strait situation” were the reasons for the change. Chinese who had already come to Taiwan were allowed finish their
‘UNITING TAIWAN’: While the boxer’s home town is offering free train and sports center access, stores around the nation are offering discounts to celebrate her victory New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) yesterday declared Aug. 12 “Lin Yu-ting Day” after the Taiwanese boxer won a gold medal in the women’s 57kg category at the Paris Olympics. Lin’s hometown is in the city’s Yingge District (鶯歌). The final between Lin and Poland’s Julia Szeremeta was broadcast live at the city hall early yesterday morning, where Hou, Lin’s mother and more than 200 people rooted for her. Thunderous roars and applause erupted at the city hall when the referee lifted Lin’s hand to show she had won. To celebrate Lin’s hard-won victory, Aug. 12 would be designated Lin
HUGE UPGRADE: Once Terminal 3 is completed, the airport’s passenger service capacity would expand to 82 million travelers per year from 37 million, an official said The north concourse of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 is scheduled to begin operations in the middle of next year, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said yesterday. The Terminal 3 project was launched as the number of air travelers accessing the nation’s largest international airport each year has already exceeded the combined capacity of terminals 1 and 2. The two existing terminals were designed to be accessed by 37 million air travelers per year. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, about 48.36 million accessed the airport in 2019. The airport operator yesterday organized a field trip for reporters to see Terminal 3 construction