Department of Government Ethics

The Clean Government Commission, Taipei City Government
A declaration was made to introduce a Clean Government Commission by Taipei City Government after Mayor Hau’s inauguration. And after the planning of the Commission and the enactment of relevant laws and regulations, the Commission was then established on February 27th, 2007. The main purpose of the Commission is to find corruption practices and scams as well as promote the benefits and eliminate the disadvantages through a combination of examination, investigation, recognition and evaluation of services in all government authorities that are currently functioning.
A total of 29 conferences have been held since the formation of the Commission, consisting of 156, 25, and 56 reports on cases, discussions and special-topic projects, respectively. There have also been presentations on auditing of purchase verification in construction and the examination and supervision of internal control. To strengthen external supervision mechanism, an anti-corruption visitation is led by agents hired by the Commission and sent to institutions (especially to corruption-prone institutions such as the Mortuary Services Office). A presentation is then made to the agents by the institution authorities. Solutions to the questions and suggestions from the agents are also required to improve the incorruption image of the institutions. In the future, with the integration of the corruption prevention, fighting corruption and further corruption prevention mechanism, an institution-wide database on reviewing corruption practices will come into being. It tracks down and monitors the actions that are taken after preventing corruption practices, and aims to generate an ethic, transparent, and accountable new model in the clean and competent government.
Events for the Taipei International Anti-Corruption Day
Probity is the most precious asset of Taipei City Government. To declare the determination in incorruptible governing, since 2005 the City Government has started to promote a series of events regarding the Taipei International Anti-Corruption Day. Through co-hosting major anti-corruption events with other institutions, NGOs, schools and volunteers, the city government invites the public to join in together so the people get to know the existence, cause, severeness as well as the potential threats of corruption, and then strengthen public awareness on anti-corruption.
Viewed in totality, the events held in the past years promoting anti-corruption have surrounded topics such as Education of Honesty, Professional Ethics and Administrative Transparency.
 Education of Honesty:
To enable general knowledge of the education of honesty as well as democracy under the rule of law to be implanted into school premises, seminars and competitions, such as the Creative Comic Strip and Animation Competition, the “I Love Honesty” Storytelling Contest, the Youth Seminar on Honesty, the Debate Contest on Clean Government and the Teaching Program Contest for Infusion Education on Integrity, were held to encourage teenagers and teachers in school to join in together and realize the topics on anti-corruption.
 Professional Ethics:
Several events, to eliminate unlawful requests and canvass, taking valued gifts from institutions, and invitations to banquets to civil servants, were held for the purpose of establishing the values of integrity within employees in corruption-prone fields such as medicine, engineering, motor vehicle licensing and mortuary services. These events include the Seminar on Health and Medical Ethics, the New Mortuary Services Forum, the Seminar on Engineering Ethics and the Vehicle Inspection Agency Conference, uniting the industry, the government and the academia in eliminating unjust tunneling.
 Administrative Transparency:
Granting the Administrative Transparency Awards and holding the Administrative Transparency Forum encourage administrative authorities (personnel) to develop administrative transparency measures, and post announcements citizens are interested in on the internet platform, and at the same time turn around the doubts of authorities making black-box operations.
The Administrative Transparency Awards
Taipei City Government not only aims to satisfy the citizens with the right to know, but also provides channels of external supervision. To urge government institutions to link with government electronization and promote measures of administrative transparency, the Administrative Transparency Awards was then established in 2009 to lower the chance of corruption. There have been four selection events since then, through administrative awarding and incentive payments, Taipei City Government had 138 measures proposed, with 38 of them winning the prize. With the promotion and access of the outstanding measures such as the Joint Review Policy for Construction Permits and the Road Excavation Geographical Information Network to the public, the effectiveness of administrative anti-corruption practices was taken to a next level through external supervision. Exhibitions of the achievements are extensively shown each year at the Taipei IT Month.
In 2012, designated by the Agency Against Corruption of the Ministry of Justice, a composition of a report on methods of promotion was then passed on to government ethic authorities for reference. In the same year, two Administrative Transparency Forums were held in both the National Central Library and Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Specialists and scholars began to research and discuss how promotion and construction of administrative transparency measures were to be carried out. In 2013, response to the concept of administrative transparency was then seen at the Administrative Transparency e-Service selection event of the Kaohsiung City Government, successfully extending the concept throughout authorities.
Anti-Corruption Volunteers
In November 2008, the Department of Government Ethics of the City Government formed Anti-Corruption Volunteer Groups to successfully build a corruption-intolerant society and to raise the sense of civil consciousness through the majority looking out for the minority. By means of serving and participating voluntarily within grassroots, campus and on-site events, at the same time the Groups communicate with the public face-to-face and bring spirits of integrity to the society. The events anti-corruption volunteers helped in in the year 2013 comprised Anti-Corruption Promotion, Supervision of Construction by the Public, Market Visitations, Transparent Inspection and Corruption-Free Environment On-Campus. A total of 75 volunteers helped promote anti-corruption operations, and over 1,500 devoted in helping and assisting. There were also various event-preparation gatherings and the annual tea party to raise spirits in group participation and send out more encouragements and feedbacks to volunteers.
Apart from the regular events from the volunteers, there are also promotion projects carried out such as:
 Supervision of Construction by the Public: Through the participation of the public, expanding external supervision and inspecting all road digging and construction in Taipei City, eliminating unauthorized excavation or those with invalid road construction permits.
 Market Visitations: Helping with vendor visitation in markets and gathering information on suggestions for the Market Administration Office of Taipei City as well as understanding the current conditions of the management and functionality of equipment in the market.
 Transparent Inspection: Providing assistance in inspecting borough offices to comply with regulations regarding the Neighborhood Construction Subsidy usage plan throughout the City; furthermore, posting the current conditions online.
 Corruption-Free Environment On-Campus: From playing and describing the anti-corruption animations as well as activities involving quizzes with prizes, visiting campuses and implanting honesty and basic anti-corruption concepts are promoted.
Community College Curriculum in
Promoting a Clean Government and an Ethical Society
To unite the community to join the integrity education network and nurture the sense of anti-corruption within citizens’ minds, the Department of Government Ethics has supported community colleges in the City from 2006. Designing unique and interesting curriculum with localized characteristics that surround the idea of Promoting a Clean Government and an Ethical Society enables the concepts - Against Corruption and Promoting Integrity and Corruption-Intolerant to foster within citizens’ minds through learning activities.
There have been various courses organized in the past years relating cultivating online-citizen journalists, picture book creations, voluntary storytelling training, mobile theater performances, sign language and Yueqin, Beiguan traditional arts and ukulele performances. The courses are implanted the values of anti-corruption and integrity. Through activities on the Citizen Week each semester or regional events, the achievements are exhibited, and the ideas of integrity governance are extended as well as promoted among community members.
Introduction of courses in community colleges of Taipei City:
1. Songshan Community College – Citizen Journalist Cultivating:
By means of the network relationship between community colleges, community members, and the citizen news reporting platform, the intellectual community, who has always been caring about community topics, are able to participate in and interactively communicate on the discussion of public (anti-corruption) issues reporting.
2. Xinyi Community College – Justice Speculations
With the community college acting as an education platform; having equality and justice as the main concept, leading members to think ways to fulfill the concept of justice on a daily basis as well as understand its relationship with an anti-corruption society.
3. Wenshan Community College – Community Video-Making Training
Together with the Citizen Monitoring Group, video reports on local issues, such as road safety is made and spread on various network platforms, awakening awareness on public issues.
4. Zhongshan Community College – Probity March-and-Sing Ukulele Performing Group
Through implanting words against corruption and that promote integrity in song lyrics, citizens perform with the extraordinarily interesting ukulele; at the same time advocate the anti-corruption concept of public servants rejecting bribes, banquets as well as requests and canvass.
5. Neihu Community College – Citizen Journalist Cultivating
Students learn the ability to write about news topics as well as create short films from interviews on anti-corruption volunteers and topics on supervision of construction by the public. Through practical work, citizens learn how to play the roll in supervising the government.
6. Beitou Community College – Supervision of Construction by the Public
Through road pavement and construction in the City, the Citizen Journalist Cultivating courses such as video-shooting and recording, lead students to develop a thought of proactive supervision in public construction.
7. Daan Community College – I Love Integrity Picture Book Workshop
After the 8th series of the I Love Integrity Picture book, the anti-corruption creative picture book story writing course promotes concepts of an anti-corruption environment and an ethical society. The workshop collaborates with the Good News Radio Station on special interviews, with teachers and students sharing their writing experience, and at the same time causing a ripple effect of spreading anti-corruption concepts.
8. Shilin Community College – Community Mobile Theater
Combining the concept of integrity and anti-corruption with stories on a daily basis, which are then written into plays, and are performed in the community through mobile theaters. By this way, it stimulates anti-corruption awareness naturally and imperceptibly.
9. Datong Community College – Hands-On Integrity
Through implanting words against corruption and that promote integrity, later reediting the lyrics from pop songs; sign language is used for the dynamic anti-corruption songs, leading the students to realize and promote the concept of integrity through learning and performing.
10. Nangang Community College – Citizen Journalist Cultivating
With the filming and citizen education resources within the community college, video and photo shooting equipment operations are taught to students. The anti-corruption news is then reported and uploaded online. By means of social networks, cultivating the idea of anti-corruption in the neighborhood, at the same time marketing as well as promoting anti-corruption work done by the City Government.
(Last year: Beiguan Traditional Arts Workshop)
11. Zhongzheng Community College – Sounds of Integrity
Through implanting words against corruption and that promote integrity into the lyrics of the traditional vocal performances and songs of the Chinese instrument - Yueqin, it instills the concept of anti-corruption to students. Making use of performances in events held by the community colleges spreads seeds of integrity in the neighborhood and expands the efficacy of setting up the course.