《TAIPEI TIMES》 Coast guard battling to keep staff, short of equipment

By Yang Cheng-yu and Jason Pan / Staff reporters

The Coast Guard Administration （CGA） has a high turnover rate, as well as a shortage of funding and equipment, a Control Yuan report found.

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A high proportion of volunteer personnel are quitting after one year, Control Yuan member Pasuya Poiconu （浦忠成） said while presenting the report on Friday.

The problem is particularly acute among the 13 coastal patrol units, which have some of the heaviest and most demanding workloads, with personnel required to work rotating 24-hour shifts and be on constant alert.

Among the reasons people gave for resigning after one year at the coastal patrol units were the heavy workload, being unable to control their use of personal time, day-night shift rotations leading to deteriorating health and wishing to seek other lines of work, the report said.

CGA officials said that due to the workload and 24-hour shifts, the coastal patrol units are mainly staffed by armed forces personnel.

In the past five years, more than 10 percent of volunteer personnel at the coastal patrol units asked to be discharged within a year, the report said.

CGA officials said they have taken up measures to improve the retention rate, such as raising stipends, reducing patrol duties and scheduling more fixed work.

However, the CGA said this did not have the desired effect.

The CGA falls under the Ocean Affairs Council.

Poiconu suggested the Ocean Affairs Council assist the CGA in setting up a dedicated body to recruit conscripts, volunteer personnel and qualified graduates.

Meanwhile, the report also said that estimated NT$84 million （US$2.65 million） is required to modernize the CGA’s tools and devices, and install state-of-the-art digital equipment.

The CGA’s total budget for this year is NT$26.5 billion.

While upgrades to the coastal patrol units’ equipment and devices began five years ago, they are still short 294 automatic and 149 digital cameras, while observation posts are short 105 night vision devices and harbor inspection stations are short 106 hand-held infrared sensors, the report said.

Coast guard units and patrol personnel at harbors need new equipment, including 180 new fixed searchlights and 100 miniature digital cameras at 180 and 100 units respectively, the report said.

A shortage of new electronic devices and observation equipment would affect the CGA’s ability to monitor and safeguard the nation’s coastline and marine territory, and could endanger coast guard personnel, Poiconu said.

The report suggested that NT$100 million of the budget be allocated to cover procurement and additional needs, adding that the purchase and delivery of new equipment should be expedited.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES