Sat, Mar 03, 2001 page3

• Poll indicates that disaffection with DPP growing fast

  DISILLUSIONMENT Fed up with the last nine months of political upheaval, polls indicate that the government's honeymoon period has long since passed away

  • By Crystal Hsu / STAFF REPORTER
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  A tracking poll conducted by TVBS between Feb. 26 and Feb. 27 showed President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) popularity at 34 percent, having plummeting from near 80 percent after his inauguration last May.

  Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄), stood at 28 percent, lower than four months ago when he put the brakes on the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant (核四).

  If such a decline in popular support continues, the ruling DPP may expect a voter revolt at the end of the year when the country is due to elect new legislators, city mayors and county commissioners, individuals on the street and lawmakers say.

  Chang Chun-lai (張君雷), 46, a resident of Tucheng, Taipei County, vowed he would not cast his ballot for any DPP candidate in the December elections.

  Living in a DPP stronghold, Chang and his family of six all voted for the DPP in the 2000 presidential campaign.

  "There is no way I will repeat the same mistake again," even though the elections are still nine months away, he said. The company Chang works for is on the verge of closure, thanks to the gloomy economy.

  Chen Chu-tsu (陳珠子), 61, a grandmother, and a resident of Linkou, Taipei County, echoed his bitterness.

  "Only a fool would stumble on the same stone twice," she said sarcastically. Sharing the same surname as the president, Chen Chu-tsu and her family rallied en mass to the DPP camp last March.

  "They are inexperienced, visionless and irresponsible," the grandmother said of the government.

  She went on to explain that she has lost a six-figure sum in the stock market over the past few months.

  DPP lawmaker Shen Fu-hsiung (沈富雄) said the slowing economy was hurting the government's image the most.

  According to the latest official statistics, at least 329,000 people are out of work, the highest in 15 years, with 774,000 people affected by the high unemployment rate.

  This figure has raised widespread alarm, as the country has yet to install any kind of social security program.

  More and more people, faced with mounting debts, are taking their lives as a way out. Meanwhile, reports of mass lay offs continue to roll-in.

  Against this backdrop, the government has been tied up with partisan feuding for the bulk of its rule thus far.

  "I remember asking the premier to name his achievements, and all he could say was the continuation of construction of the nuclear plant," KMT Legislator Chu Li-luan (朱立倫) said.

  "But the spat could have been avoided, had the Cabinet not scrapped the plant in the first place."

  The policy turnaround is costing taxpayers NT$6.5 million a day, not including potential compensation payments, the state-run Taiwan Power Company (台電) claims.

  New Party lawmaker Lai Shyh-bao (賴世葆) linked what he called the premier's wishy-washy stewardship to his lack of substantive power.

  "Chang can't do anything without taking cues from the Presidential Office," Lai said.

  As such, the premier, while repeatedly hinting at a partial Cabinet reshuffle, is hesitant to take any decisive steps, he said.

  "The absence of presidential instruction underlies his vacillation."

  Shen expressed reservations about Lai's opinion but agreed that the premier's posturing -- intentional or not -- dealt a further blow to Cabinet morale.

  On Sunday, the president himself voiced grave discontent over the Cabinet's inefficiency. Nine months into office, Chen said that inexperience can no longer be used to explain away administrative inaction, nor can the opposition resistance suffice as an excuse.

  With a two-thirds majority in the legislature, the opposition alliance can, and often does, thwart the policy goals of the DPP government.

  Unsympathetic, People First Party spokesman Sun Ta-chien (孫大千) said that the Chen administration is to blame for the predicament it is in.

  "Not that we like to criticize the government, but it hasn't done anything worth praising," Sun said.

  Sun added that he believes that Chen is running the country by trial and error.

  This and other criticisms, fair or not, apparently are striking a cord with more and more people, as can be seen from Chen's sliding approval ratings.

  In the hope of reversing the tide, Shen, the DPP strategist, predicated that the Cabinet will undergo a minor facelift by or before May 20, the first anniversary of Chen's presidency.

  "The government can use some new blood," he said.

  For your information

  Misery index

  * President Chen Shui-bian's popularity stands at 34 percent, having plummeted from 80 percent after his inauguration. * Premier Chang Chun-hsiung's approval rating is at 28 percent, lower than when he first announced he was halting the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant four months ago. * At least 329,000 people are out of work, the highest number in 15 years. * An estimated 774,000 people are affected by the high unemployment rate.
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