When Chen Shui-bian was mayor of Taipei, he enjoyed very high approval ratings for his policies. But the staff of the city government was by no means satisfied, because they had to work very hard as a result of his reforms. Many government officials, both
civilian and military, have long been pro-KMT. The same is true with the
staffs of state-owned enterprises and schools, over Chen Shui-bian as a
new president. The problems of partisan bias, however, remains very
serious among high and lower-level officials who are predominantly pro-KMT
and have therefore put up a passive resistance to the DPP leadership. Our
officials was used to serve for privilege that included about lawmakers
and central boss, not for whole Taiwanese people. In short; the deeply partisan and bureaucratic civil
service remains a weighty legacy and an obstacle to the transition of
power and challenge to the will to reform. After half a century of one-party
rule, Taiwan’s government apparatus has accumulated a great many
problems that pose a anti-bian’s attitude over political reform and
anti-black gold’s policy. Taiwan’s civil service is in a
decrepit state. Poor performance can be directly linked to the lack of
incentives, political interference and corruption -- all of which have
eroded the concept of administering according to the law. Civil servants enjoy extensive
benefits, mandated by legislation, including job security, promotions and
pay raises. Promotions are based on personal connections and seniority
rather than merit. This has produced a culture where
civil servants are afraid to take responsibility and try to involve as
many other agencies as they can in their work in order to evade the blame
in case of mistakes. Every
day, civil servants sip their tea and wait -- wait for punch-out time, for
promotion, for retirement. Under the KMT’s rule, every
level of government was completely in the grip of party organizations. The
party could override laws, while political influence determined
promotions. As a result, there is no tradition of administrative
neutrality. Since the DPP came to power, many
bureaucrats have been resisting its command. The DPP’s “greening” of
the establishment [putting more party members into the government] has prompted
more resistance. Another long-entrenched problem is
the confusion between political and administrative responsibility. In the
KMT era, high-level political appointees always took credit for jobs well
done, but never the responsibility for major mistakes, because the blame
was laid on civil servants. The DPP government has swung in
the opposite direction -- political appointees are blamed and fired for
mishaps, while the administrative responsibilities of civil servants are
often overlooked. Obviously, when Taiwan on the way
of its democratic reform that problems come from either external threat or
internal conflict. So, Taiwan government needs your support.
Yours Sincerely,
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