The Examination Yuan is the
civil service commission branch, in charge of validating the qualification of civil servants, of the
government of the Republic of China (
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
). It has a
president, a
vice president, and seven to nine members, all of whom are nominated by the
president of the republic and confirmed by the
Legislative Yuan for four-year terms according to
Republic of China laws.
Organizational structure
Members composition
The Examination Yuan consists of a council with a president, a vice president, and seven to nine members. The leaders and members are nominated by the
president of the republic and approved by
Legislative Yuan for four-year terms. The incumbent 13th Examination Yuan was nominated by
President Tsai Ing-wen on May 28, 2020, and later confirmed by
Legislative Yuan on July 10, 2020. Members were inaugurated on September 1, 2020, and their terms expire on August 31, 2024.
Agencies
The Examination Yuan has four main agencies:
* The
Ministry of Examination (), which administers examinations for civil servants and contract personnel.
*
Ministry of Civil Service (), which oversees the pay, promotion, and retirement of civil servants.
*
Civil Service Protection and Training Commission (), which is responsible for training and protecting the rights of civil servants.
* Public Service Pension Fund Supervisory Board ()
Offices and committees
The Examination Yuan also includes twelve offices and three committees:
* Counselors
* Secretariat
* First Division
* Second Division
* Third Division
* Editing and Compilation Office
* Information Management Office
* Secretary Office
* Personnel Office
* Accounting Office
* Statistics Office
* Civil Service Ethics Office
* Petition and Appeals Committee
* Legal Affairs Committee
* Research and Development Committee
History
Constitutional theory
The concept of Examination Yuan is a part of the
Three Principles of the People formulated by
Sun Yat-sen, which was enlightened by the old
Imperial examination system used in
Imperial China. It is one of the five government branches ("yuans") of the
Government of the Republic of China. Practically, it operates like a ministry of the Executive Yuan, though its members may not be removed by the president or premier.
Establishment and relocation to Taiwan
After the end of
Northern Expedition in 1928, the
Nationalist Government set up the preparatory office of the Examination Yuan in October 1928 in which the organic law was promulgated. In May 1929, the headquarters of the Examination Yuan was inaugurated at Kuankung and Yueh Fei Temple in
Nanking. In January 1930, the Examination Yuan and its subordinates Examination Committee and Ministry of Civil Service were formally established. In December 1937, the headquarters was temporarily relocated to
Chungking during the
Second Sino-Japanese War. After the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
in 1945, the headquarters was moved back to
Nanking.
In January 1950, the headquarters were relocated temporarily to
Taipei Confucius Temple in
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
after the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...
. In December 1951, the headquarters were moved to
Muzha District
Muzha/Mucha () was a district in Taipei City, Taiwan. The name refers to wooden fences built in the region to defend against attacks by Taiwanese aborigines. In 1990, it merged with Jingmei District and become eastern parts of new created Wensha ...
,
Taipei. In March 1990, the Yuheng Building of the Yuan was inaugurated.
Democratization
During the second revision of the
Additional Articles of the Constitution in 1992, confirmation powers of its members were transferred from the
Control Yuan
The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Prior to constitutional reforms in the 1990s, the Control Yuan, along with National Assembly (electoral college) and the Legislat ...
to the
Legislative Yuan, and articles related to its role as a governing body of
mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...
were abolished. In 2019, the Examination Yuan was reduced from 19 members to between 7 and 9, and terms were reduced from 6 years to 4 to coincide with presidential and legislative elections.
There have been calls to abolish the Examination Yuan (and the
Control Yuan
The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Prior to constitutional reforms in the 1990s, the Control Yuan, along with National Assembly (electoral college) and the Legislat ...
) by the
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the
Taiwan People's Party
The Taiwan People's Party is a political party in Taiwan, formally established on 6 August 2019 by Ko Wen-je, who serves as its first and current chairman.
Application process
The party was proposed in August 2019 by Mayor of Taipei Ko Wen- ...
(TPP) and
New Power Party (NPP).
TPP caucus whip Lai Hsiang-ling stated that members of the Examination Yuan hold "
fat-cat patronage appointments", whereby they earn outside income on top of their usual salary, including by teaching at universities in mainland China.
Additionally, the functions of the Examination Yuan are seen as overlapping with those of the
Executive Yuan, and an online poll showed about half of respondents supported its abolishment.
President
Tsai Ing-wen called for the two Yuans to be abolished at the DPP national congress in 2020;
the
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Ta ...
responded by saying that it was an effort to distract from the DPP's poor leadership, but did not provide their stance on the matter.
A constitutional amendment committee was formed in September of 2020 to draft proposals for the abolition of the Examination Yuan.
Terms
Appointments of the leaders and members of the Examination Yuan were carried out with
presidential nomination and
parliamentary confirmation. The first through eighth Examination Yuans were all confirmed by the first
Control Yuan
The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Prior to constitutional reforms in the 1990s, the Control Yuan, along with National Assembly (electoral college) and the Legislat ...
, whose members first convened in 1948 and had their terms extended indefinitely. During the democratization of
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
in the 1990s, a series of
constitutional amendments known as the
Additional Articles of the Constitution were promulgated to reorganize the
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
. These amendments changed the
Control Yuan
The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Prior to constitutional reforms in the 1990s, the Control Yuan, along with National Assembly (electoral college) and the Legislat ...
from a
parliament chamber
Chamber or the chamber may refer to:
In government and organizations
*Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests
*Legislative chamber, in politics
*Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
to a commission-type
agency
Agency may refer to:
Organizations
* Institution, governmental or others
** Advertising agency or marketing agency, a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients
** Employment agency, a business that ...
. Confirmation of the Examination Yuan officials was then moved to other
parliament chamber
Chamber or the chamber may refer to:
In government and organizations
*Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests
*Legislative chamber, in politics
*Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...
s to maintain the
separation of powers.
Currently, according to the
Additional Articles of the Constitution, the Examination Yuan is confirmed by the now-
unicameral parliament — the
Legislative Yuan.
Presidents and vice presidents of the Examination Yuan
See also
*
Government of the Republic of China
*
Politics of the Republic of China
*
Civil service commission
References
External links
{{Commons category
Official site
National civil service commissions
Government agencies established in 1930
1930 establishments in China