Cabinet defends its budget-fight tactics

Government officials denied yesterday that the Cabinet had attempted to remove a Taoyuan County police chief because he's opposed to a Cabinet-led effort to overturn changes to the nation's revenue allocation law.

In addition, the DPP government defended its use of police officers, who have distributed local governments leaflets that outline the Cabinet's reasons for asking for the veto motion.

A vote on changes to the revenue allocation law -- which would give local governments an additional NT$150 billion annually from the central government's pockets -- is scheduled to take place tomorrow.

The amendments were passed by the KMT-dominated legislature in the final hours of the previous legislative session last month.

"The premier said that he was stunned to learn of the intimidation allegations," Chuang Suo-hang (莊碩漢), spokesman for the Cabinet, said yesterday.

According to Chuang, Premier Yu Shyi-kun has instructed Cabinet Secretary-General Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) to telephone Taoyuan County Commissioner Chu Li-lun (朱立倫) and find out more about the matter. A full investigation was also promised.

Still, while Chuang promised officials would punish those responsible should the allegations prove true, he also said he doubted the claims made against the DPP government.

"The allegations sound impossible, because the central government totally respects the autonomy of local governments, including the appointment and discharge of law enforcement officers," Chuang said.

Chu, a KMT member strongly opposed to the Cabinet's efforts to veto the budget allocation changes, made the allegations yesterday before meeting with the premier and 25 county commissioners and mayors at the Hsinyi Club in Taipei yesterday.

Chuang yesterday also defended an order to dispatch police officers with leaflets explaining the DPP government's view on the budget allocation changes.

The spokesman said police officers were used in the public relations campaign over the Lunar New Year holidays because no one else was available.

"In addition to the shortage of people, neither post offices or express delivery companies were open over the New Year holidays to make deliveries," Chuang said.

"Besides, it's quite normal for government agencies to back up one another in an emergency."

Chuang said the Cabinet was forced to rely on police officers because the 25 counties commissioners and mayors and 225 lawmakers had asked to receive the information before tomorrow.

"While we dispatched our own people to make deliveries to counties and cities north of Hsinchu County, law enforcement officers only helped out in those areas south of Hsinchu."

The Taipei City Government had criticized the use of police officers to make the deliveries on Saturday and yesterday, saying it violated the Administrative Procedure Law and the law governing police officers.

"If the Cabinet can dispatch law enforcement officers to make deliveries today, it can mobilize soldiers to do so tomorrow," said Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇), Taipei City spokesman.

The National Police Administration under the Ministry of the Interior acknowledged that it had delivered "important documents" on behalf of the Cabinet.

"But we didn't know exactly what they were," said Wang Lung (王隆), public relations director at the administration.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary-General Lee Ying-yuan said he was optimistic that the DPP government would win in tomorrow's showdown with the opposition parties in the legislature.