Thu, Oct 07, 1999 page3

• Opposition jittery over rumored term extension for Lee

  LYING LOW The president has said there will be no term extension while political analysts say opposition parties should stay out of the reconstruction limelight

  • By Lin Chieh-yu / STAFF REPORTER
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  Political observers said yesterday that opposition party candidates should not waste their time worrying about whether the KMT would move to postpone elections but instead focus on expanding grass-roots support.

  Concerns over the possibility that President Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) term would be extended have been growing since KMT lawmakers suggested elections be postponed.

  But Lee said at a press conference on Tuesday that the constitution was clear about presidential elections, and his term will expire next year on May 20.

  However, New Party and DPP legislative caucus leaders demanded yesterday that President Lee clearly inform the public whether or not the presidential election, scheduled for March 18, would be postponed.

  Speaking at a press conference for foreign reporters yesterday, C.J. Chen (程建人), the director-general of the Government Information Office, said there was little he could add to the president's comments. However, Chen did not deny the possibility of a postponement of elections and stressed that much was dependent on post-quake restoration work.

  "It really depends on how reconstruction plans proceed," Cheng said.

  He added that five months remain until the presidential elections.

  Scholars pointed out that there is no political or legal reason to postpone the presidential election.

  "Now KMT presidential candidate Lien Chan (連戰) is in position to lead the political scene, dominated by the reconstruction effort. The opposition party should be worried about their roles in the reconstruction, not whether the elections will be postponed," said Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), a political scientist at Chungcheng University.

  Scholars also agreed yesterday that the DPP and its presidential candidate Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) had done well to devote full attention to reconstruction efforts and avoid partisan squabbles.

  "The ruling party will take responsibility for reconstruction projects which will put Lien on center stage in the restoration process," Lin said.

  "But it is not necessary for other candidates to compete for the limelight. They [other candidates] should concentrate on helping NGOs and assisting local governments coordinate resources," Lin said.

  "If the central government does well in the reconstruction efforts, Lien may give his popular support a boost. But if it only draws criticism, people will shift their support to other candidates who have worked at the grass-roots level," Lin added.

  Chen led a delegation on a four-day visit to Japan beginning Tuesday to gather information from the Japanese government and non-governmental organizations on that country's earthquake experiences.

  Chen said Taiwan did not have experience in post-quake reconstruction nor in managing cooperation between central and local administrations after a crisis of this size.

  Chen said he hoped to bring back feasible methods for Taiwan's NGOs.

  "Four years ago the Kobe quake in Japan caused damage far more serious than Taiwan's 921 quake," Chen said. "However, the Japanese government successfully and quickly coordinated all powers and resources from local administrations and non-government organizations." Chen is expected to meet with Kobe NGO leaders to discuss with local officials how they cooperated and worked.

  The DPP central Headquarters announced its intention yesterday to establish a volunteer center for helping local administrations in areas hard hit by the earthquake.

  "To coordinate all NGO resources in efficiently reconstructing the disaster areas in central Taiwan, that is the opposition party's job," said DPP secretary-general Yu hsi-kun.
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