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Yu faces big challenges ahead ...

Premier Yu Shyi-kun gestures as he makes a plea for the legislature to overturn amendments to the Law Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures yesterday. Yu emerged victorious as the legislature failed to shoot down the Cabinet's request to overturn the amendments to the law. PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES

Although the Cabinet won the support needed for its veto motion to overturn amendments to the nation's budget allocation law yesterday afternoon, political observers warned that the victory was only temporary and that Premier Yu Shyi-kun still faces many challenges in the legislature.

"The triumph doesn't necessarily mean that the premier will prevail every time the ruling and opposition parties are at odds," said Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), deputy director at the Institute of International Relations at National Chengchi University. Wu today begins a new position as deputy secretary-general to the president.

Wu said that the DPP should remember that although the opposition has gradually toned down its confrontational style since losing in the Dec. 1 legislative elections, KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) still continue to refuse to meet with President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) or to cooperate with the ruling party.

The showdown yesterday served as a litmus test for the loyalty of defiant members of the KMT who recognize the DPP's political ideals and dare to safeguard the interest of their own constituencies instead of bowing to KMT party pressure.

"While the KMT vowed to discipline party members who failed to toe the party line and the PFP pledged to be in line with its big brother, some KMT members still dared to express their individual discontent over the party's dramatic measure not just with words but also with actions," Wu said.

The DPP might be well-advised to negotiate with the naysayers in yesterday's ballot in order to step up cooperation with them in the future.

"The triumph paves the way for partisan cooperation in the future," Wu said.

Wu brushed aside speculation that it was unwise for Yu to propose the veto motion just after assuming office on Feb. 1. Some critics said Yu risked jeopardizing his own political career with the proposal.

"On the contrary, I thought it was quite a smart move from a tactical point of view, although some criticized the move as provocative," Wu said.

By proposing the veto motion, Wu said the Cabinet kicked the ball back to the opposition parties, which were compelled to take the initiative to garner enough votes to veto the Cabinet's motion.

"That explained why the DPP didn't bother to consider imposing disciplinary action against defiant party members, while the KMT did," Wu said.

While some rivalry among political parties is generally seen as part and parcel of any democratic country, Wu said opposition parties should always keep the competition healthy and have the public's best interest at heart.

"In addition, opposition parties should learn to realize the fact that our educated electorate will use their votes to tell them that they dislike political confrontation, and the Dec. 1 legislative elections are a good example of that," Wu said.

Although the Cabinet's move seemed dramatic, Yu himself, who was a farmer for eight years, is regarded as a temperate and hard-working individual.

Before he was appointed premier, he served as the secretary-general at the Presidential Office for a year.

Prior to that, Yu taught part-time at the National Taiwan College of Arts (國立藝術學院) for almost a year.

Before his teaching stint, Yu was the vice premier to former premier Tang Fei (唐飛) and was widely considered a leading candidate to succeed Tang as premier.

His political career was cut short, however, when he took responsibility for the Pachang Creek (八掌溪) incident, which claimed the lives of four workers when rescuers failed to arrive in time.

Yu's departure made him the shortest serving vice premier in the nation's history, his term lasting just five months. Although Yu claimed that his choice to resign was his and his alone, it is believed that the decision came directly from the president himself in a bid to help quell discontent by showing that high-ranking government officials should bear the responsibity for mistakes made on their watch.

Along with Yu, the National Fire Administration Director Chen Hung-yi (陳弘毅) and National Police Administration Director-General Ting Yuan-chin (丁原進) also resigned.
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