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Opposition majority finds limits

The opposition alliance's failure to override the Cabinet's veto on the recently revised funding rules showed that the edge it enjoys in the new legislature is precarious.

The ruling bloc, comprised of the DPP and the Taiwan Solidarity Union who together control 102 seats in the 225-member legislature, may overcome its numerical disadvantage and push through policy initiatives that have the backing of the public.

To avoid alienating their constituents, a few lawmakers from the opposition KMT and PFP abstained from Tuesday's showdown in an indirect show of disobedience.

"So be it if the party decides to revoke my membership," said KMT lawmaker Chen Hung-chang (陳宏昌), who opted to stay away despite his party's mobilization order.

Though local governments would gain a slightly bigger slice in tax redistribution fund under the voided amendment, they would risk losing financial aid for public construction projects in their districts.

Chen, who represents Taipei County, said he would rather risk the wrath of his party than jeopardize the interests of his constituency that would lose funds if the revision went into practice.

KMT Legislative Whip Lin Yi-shih (林益世) said it is up to the party's disciplinary committee to decide what to do with Chen and two others, Yang Wen-hsin (楊文欣) and Tseng-Tsai Mei-tso (曾蔡美佐).

Lin said he doubted the party would expel the trio, as they had been under great pressure from their supporters.

With a limited budget, the Cabinet could not implement the so-called Ma bill -- as the disputed amendments are known because they were sponsored by Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) -- without squeezing other expenditures.

"Ma's bill did not really enlarge the [budget] pie because the overall revenues did not increase," said PFP legislator Norman Ying (殷乃平), who also teaches banking at National Chengchi University.

Ying and his colleagues had sought unsuccessfully to ward off the confrontation. Despite its reservations, the PFP decided on Monday to enter an alliance with the KMT to uphold what it called the legislature's dignity.

"Once the Cabinet succeeded in overturning the revised law, it would think it is all right to veto any legislation it dislikes," PFP legislative leader Diane Lee (李慶安) said before the vote, not mentioning the fact that the amendments were rammed through by the then-majority KMT last month without committee review or any form of discussion.

In fact, the PFP threatened to overturn the bill the day after it was passed because the KMT failed to back in return its own pet legislation that would have required the government to provide financial support for former guerrilla soldiers.

Only when PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) intervened did the second-largest opposition party agreed to mute its protest.

Pundits have said that Soong, a potential candidate for the 2004 presidency, lent a helping hand in the hope of reconciling with the KMT, as the two parties appeal to roughly the same supporters.

Daniel Huang (黃義交), another PFP legislative whip, said the party would not oust the two mavericks, Lin Cheng-er (林正二) and Lin Chung-te (林春德), noting the defeat was "not vital."

"We would like to understand why they opted to defy the caucus's decision," Huang said. "But the penalty, if any, will be very minor, as the issue had no vital bearing on the PFP."

Lin Chung-te, an Aboriginal lawmaker said that Ma's bill would crowd out aid dollars for the Council of Aboriginal Affairs.

"I can't sacrifice the welfare of fellow Aborigines for partisan reasons," he said.
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