Though the DPP government is putting a proposed "cross-party alliance for national stabilization" on the back burner, that doesn't mean the alliance won't be pursued further, a source from the Presidential Office said yesterday.
The source said the government planned to focus first on getting next year's budget and other economic bills passed in the legislature.
But that doesn't mean the proposed alliance has been scrapped, and "it will definitely be formed by February when the new legislative session begins," the Presidential Office official said.
Fearing his DPP wouldn't win a majority in the legislature, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) proposed forming an alliance -- made up of lawmakers of all political stripes -- before the Dec. 1 elections
The goal was to control 120 seats out of the 225-member legislature, to make it easier for the DPP government to get its policies passed.
Chen also said that he would consult the alliance in the formation of the Cabinet -- a right opposition lawmakers said he should yield to whoever was the largest party in the legislature.
But given the KMT's drubbing in the Dec. 1 polls and the DPP's 87 seats in the new legislature -- the most of any party -- Chen's initiative now seems pointless.
Also, since the president has stopped making public comments on the proposed alliance there's been speculation the government is no longer eager to go forward with the plan.
In addition, opposition parties have said they will not interfere with Chen's right to form the Cabinet.
Another factor that could undermine the alliance is that Chen may not find the 120 members he desires.
Between the DPP and the Taiwan Solidarity Union, the "pan-green" camp will control 100 seats in the new legislature.
If the 10 independent lawmakers join the alliance, that still leaves another 10 who would have to come from the KMT or the People First Party (PFP).
Because both of those parties have made it clear they won't participate in the alliance, "it won't be easy to convince individual KMT or PFP lawmakers to join," a DPP lawmaker conceded.
Tsai Huang-liang (
Wu Nai-ren (
"The alliance will definitely be formed by Feb. 1, and once it is formed, it will have 120 legislators," he said.
Still, the Presidential Office source said the alliance is not at the top of the government's agenda.
"The most important task for the time being should not be the Cabinet reshuffle, or the formation of the alliance," the aide said, "because what the voters hate to see after the elections is continuous bickering among parties about the proposal."
The aide said there were more pressing matters to be addressed. "What we should concentrate on is the review of the annual budget and the bills to improve the country's economy," the source said.
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