Leniency to Be Granted to Honest Officials
By Michael Ha
Staff Reporter
The Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) issued new audit guidelines Wednesday that could ease penalties for government workers who fail to follow procedures inadvertently. But others who procrastinate or neglect their duties concerning public welfare services and economic stimulus projects will now face harsher disciplinary measures.
The board said that in future audits, government officials and workers who violate procedures or exceed budget caps while working in good faith will be granted leniency.
The new guidelines are part of the board's initiative to encourage government workers to become more active in tackling their tasks at hand. They are also designed to put less emphasis on following a myriad of complex administrative regulations when tackling government tasks and new economic projects.
According to the BAI, if government officials violate procedures and if such violations are judged to be unavoidable or inadvertent while implementing their tasks, auditors will ease possible penalties.
Government workers dealing with economic stimulus initiatives and other measures to help boost domestic businesses are expected to benefit from these new guidelines. They would include officials implementing necessary financial initiatives and job-creating plans to boost the current slowing economy.
On the other hand, government workers and civil servants who delay taking care of their government tasks in a timely manner, particularly those involving public welfare services, will face harsher penalties, according to the audit board.
``We want to encourage officials to actively address their tasks," according to a statement issued by the BAI. ``We will give out harsher disciplinary measures to those government workers who delay taking care of their duties involving public welfare services and implementing economic stimulus measures and projects," the statement said.