TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Hundreds of retired police officers and firefighters protested outside the Taipei High Court and Central Building of the Executive Yuan on Thursday calling on the Cabinet to allocate greater benefits to retired law enforcement officers.
Speaking before a crowd of about 300 protestors, Taiwan People’s Party chair Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said over 2,000 retired officers signed on to a class-action lawsuit against the Lai administration for refusing to increase pension funds for retired police officers and firefighters, reported Storm Media.
In response, the Cabinet responded that it is still awaiting judicial review of the amendments to the Police Personnel Management Act, which was passed in August.
The Cabinet argues that the amendments passed by the opposition-controlled Legislative Yuan are unconstitutional because they overstep separation of powers between different branches of government. Cabinet Spokesperson Li Hui-chih (李慧芝) said the legislature only has the power to review and propose budgets, but responsibility for allocating funds rests with the Cabinet, reported CNA.
Huang Kuo-chang said the class action suit sets a new record as the largest lawsuit filed by the public against the government. Huang accuses President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) and the Ministry of Interior of refusing to promulgate the budget approved by legislators, as required by law.
The lawsuit alleges that the government’s unwillingness to allocate funds to retired officers is depriving the former public servants and their families of critical funds for their retirement. If the lawsuit is heard and agreed to by the courts, the Ministry of Interior will be called to pay each litigant an amount equal to the amount they would have received each month since the Police Personnel Management Act was amended in the legislature.
The Cabinet is still awaiting constitutional interpretation on the matter by the Constitutional Court, which itself faces questions about its ability to issue rulings without a full slate of justices. Spokesperson Lee said that if the increase in pension funding is ruled to be constitutional, the Cabinet will promptly make relevant adjustments and retroactively supplement the funds that have been withheld, per CNA.
The Cabinet also emphasized that it has great respect for the nation’s police officers and firefighters and will continue to work to safeguard and improve their social welfare and benefits.
