Though hardly surprising, the resignation of Premier Tang Fei (
The central government's budget bill for fiscal 2001 -- which has just been submitted to the legislature by Tang's Cabinet -- is now facing a possible suspension until the next premier is appointed.
Hong Yuh-chin (
"The DPP's decision to let Tang step down is like `burning the bridge after crossing it,'" Hong said. "The DPP should not have forced him to leave just because of differences over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant project."
Hong said Tang's resignation was a sign that President Chen Shui-bian's (
If the Cabinet is reshuffled, Hong said, the budget bill may have to go through another draft. If that's the case, it may have problems passing the legislature by the end of next month.
Chen Chen-sheng (
He said the incident showed that the president was reluctant to accept differing opinions.
"Taiwan will have to face political instability, collapse of the economy and a lack of confidence in Taiwan's policies by the international community," Chen warned.
Perng Shaw-jiin (
"If his [Tang's] ideals are in consistent with President Chen's, it is meaningless for him to stay," Perng said.
Expecting strong reaction from opposition parties against the incident, Perng said his caucus would try to negotiate with opposition legislators to see if it was possible to let Vice Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (
Chang was tipped by officials in the Presidential Office last night to be the next premier.
If the plan is rejected, the review would have to be delayed until another version is submitted by the next premier, the DPP's chief executive said.
Legislative Yuan speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
Though Tang had cited his poor health condition as the reason for stepping down, the differences between Tang and the president over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant project was widely believed to be the true cause behind Tang's decision.
Just hours before Tang's resignation was confirmed, he reaffirmed his support for the project.
Tang told the legislature that it was politically unwise to exacerbate the ongoing nuclear dispute without regard to the country's sustainable development.
"In the face of inclement challenges including -- industrial development and international competition -- I wonder where our political wisdom is if we add fire to the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant issue," Tang said yesterday at an interpellation session in the legislature earlier in the day.
Tang said the issue was not only a political one, but it also involved social and economic dimensions and should be looked at from a long-term point of view.
Tang noted that with the exception of hydro-electric power, Taiwan hardly has any energy at its own free disposal.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs last week recommended that the nuclear power plant project be scrapped, a move that was welcomed by the anti-nuclear DPP.
One of the alternatives proposed by the ministry was liquefied natural gas facilities built by the private sector.
Tang, however, had questioned over the past two days the feasibility of the proposal and reiterated his belief that the nuclear plant project should be continued.
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