Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) yesterday moved forward the date of his Cabinet's resignation by four days, a move that gave rise to speculation that he was unhappy with Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) ideas concerning Cabinet affairs.
The Cabinet was scheduled to step down next Monday ahead of the swearing in of the new legislature the following Friday, but the date was moved forward to this afternoon.
Cabinet Spokesman Shieh Jhy-wey (
"The usual date of the Cabinet's resignation is one week before the swearing in of a new legislature. That's why Chang decided to move the date forward," Shieh said.
The Cabinet spokesman made the remarks after the Cabinet's weekly meeting, where Chang informed members officially of the date change.
Time
When approached by reporters at the Executive Yuan's year-end dinner, Vice Premier Chiou I-jen (
If the Cabinet were to resign next Monday, it would leave just three days for the president to find a new premier to fill the spot before the new legislature is sworn in, Chiou said.
But speculation emerged that Chang was protesting against Hsieh's recent comments on premier candidates.
Hsieh recommended that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) appoint someone with experience as a top company executive to be the next premier. He also said some Cabinet policies should be changed because they conflicted with his campaign platform.
Before the legislative election took place on Jan. 12, Chang said he would tender his resignation before the next legislature is sworn in.
On Jan. 16, during a trip to St Lucia, Chen said Chang would be reappointed to lead the Cabinet following the resignation.
Later yesterday, however, Chang told reporters that although he had been informed by Chen that he would be reappointed, the two of them later decided to "support and respect" Hsieh's suggestion to appoint a CEO as premier.
After Chen returned to the country on Friday, he met Chang and Hsieh separately the same day. Hsieh presented his CEO proposal to the president.
"The president told me that he wanted me to move the resignation date up so he would have more time to deliberate on the matter. The vice premier's office then finalized the date with the Presidential Office," Chang said of their meeting on Friday.
No Malice
At a separate setting yesterday, Hsieh said Chang's early resignation should not be misread and that it did not indicate malice against anyone.
"There is no big difference between resigning on Jan. 24 or Jan. 28. It's just three or four days. Chang had his concerns. For example, resigning earlier is more convenient for the CEO plan," Hsieh said.
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