DPP stuck on setting up alliance

Internal problems have impeded the efforts of some DPP legislators to forge a cross-party "ruling league" (執政聯盟) which could serve as useful support to future policies of the new administration under President-elect Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), DPP insiders said yesterday.

"The internal situation within the DPP's legislative caucus has been fragile lately," admitted Lee Weng-chung (李文忠), deputy director-general of the DPP caucus in the Legislative Yuan.

In the wake of Chen's victory in the presidential election, Chen had urged the DPP legislator Shih Ming-te (施明德) to take the lead in forging a cross-party "ruling league" in the Legislative Yuan to strengthen the DPP's influence over the legislature where the KMT is still the nominal ruling party.

But the effort has encountered obstacles as DPP legislators remain split over which party alliance would best benefit the DPP, with some complaining about Chen's style in forming the new government, sources said.

Lee said two factors could account for the internal woes -- the first being how Chen is forging the new government, Lee said.

"Some leaders within the DPP's various factions felt that they were not consulted or respected during the government formation process. And some DPP legislators were upset because they didn't get a seat they wanted in the Cabinet," he said.

"Also, internal discord remained on which party we [DPP legislators] should form a league with," he added.

While Shih said no single party, including the PFP, was excluded from the priority list, some other legislators were opposed to any prospect of forging a league with the PFP, said Kuo Wen-pin, (郭文彬) a top aide to Shih.

Kuo also admitted that the recent rhetoric by Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁), a member of the DPP's Central Standing Committee, who complained that "the DPP is not a ruling party [after Chen's inauguration]," made the possibility of a cross-party alliance even more uncertain.

Judging from the process of how Chen formulated the new government, Wu has said neither the DPP nor the KMT was consulted.

The situation, he added, meant that there was no need for Shih to make efforts forging a "ruling league" in the legislature to endorse future policies pushed by Chen's administration.

Lee, however, said it was a pity that not every faction leader within the DPP legislative caucus had received "a clear message" from Chen in support of a cross-party league.

Meanwhile, there is an external variable outside the DPP legislative caucus that may derail the movement for a cross-party alliance, Lee added.

The KMT and PFP, with their combined hefty majority in the legislature, may warm up to the idea of being strong opposition parties and turn lukewarm to the idea of joining a cross-party league, Lee said.

DPP legislator David Chou (周伯倫) said a more decisive factor would be the attitude of other parties towards such an inter-party league.

"The key lies in other parties. It's a question of whether they are willing to form an alliance with us [DPP legislators]," Chou said.

Kuo claimed that Shih had been playing a "passive role" in pushing for the league.

"Let's wait and see then. If everybody [inside the DPP caucus] has disparate objectives, to push for such a league would be meaningless," he said.

"But if the effort succeeded, the administrative branch would become the biggest winner in the game," he added.