Wed, Jan 02, 2002 page3

• DPP legislators eye vice speaker's post

  POWER-SHARING The KMT's Wang Jin-pyng is expected to keep his seat as the legislature's speaker, but nobody has any idea who will be second in command

  • By Crystal Hsu / STAFF REPORTER
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  The post of vice speaker in the Legislative Yuan, whose main duty is to preside over full meetings of the legislature when the speaker is absent, is widely considered to be more prestigious than influential.

  But this conventional wisdom may not hold true in the next legislature.

  Incumbent KMT Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) is expected to remain at the helm of the body -- but with a DPP deputy.

  If the next vice speaker is from the same party as President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), he or she would act as a nexus between the DPP caucus and its opposition counterparts, the Cabinet, the Presidential Office and the party headquarters.

  "The vice speaker will be the center of the party's communication network," said Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯), the DPP's legislative whip. "He will play a much more active role in policy-making and his power will be enhanced by his ability to communicate the president's wishes to his colleagues."

  Though it will replace the KMT as the largest party in the legislature, the ruling DPP has shied away from contesting the speakership to avoid driving the KMT into an alliance with the People First Party.

  "With 87 of the 225 seats, the party cannot unilaterally bag the speaker's seat, not even with the help of the Taiwan Solidarity Union," senior DPP lawmaker Shen Fu-hsiung (沈富雄) said.

  A reckless bid, he pointed out, would only antagonize the KMT, some members of which the president might want to recruit for his administration.

  The ruling party has tied the election of the legislative leaders to the upcoming Cabinet reshuffle and the December polls for the mayorships of Taipei and Kaohsiung cities.

  Shen, one of the prospective candidates for vice speaker, said it would defy common sense if the DPP bowed out of the race for vice speaker as well, now that the voters have significantly increased the party's presence in the legislature.

  "It will take at least two parties to ensure victory in the election of the speaker and vice speaker," the four-term lawmaker said. "If Wang manages to retain his post, the party [DPP] should definitely run for the deputy's seat."

  Witty and perspicacious, Shen, 63, is dubbed the party's brain and has emerged as one of the few DPP lawmakers who maintains good relations with the opposition parties. But some colleagues are uncomfortable about his quips.

  Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), an-other heavyweight DPP legislator, said that the vice speaker must demonstrate integrating and co-ordinating skills, as he will lead negotiations with the opposition caucuses over policy and budget bills.

  Access to information, control of communication and agendas, and intimate knowledge of the legislative process are the chief tools of effective leadership, he said.

  "The nature of the vice speaker's job would enable him to know more than other colleagues, including the non-DPP speaker, and he can share what he knows as he chooses," Ker said.

  Ker, 51, who just won his fourth term representing Hsinchu City, also stands a good chance of becoming vice speaker.

  Colleagues say no one in the party can match him in technological and commercial know-how, but some express reservations about his cozy relations with the business community.

  Hong Chi-chang (洪奇昌), the most senior DPP lawmaker, is the third potential nominee for the vice speakership.

  The five-term lawmaker said he is not surprised that people consider him a likely choice, as he possesses all the qualities expected of a vice speaker.

  Hong, 51, took part in the pro-democratization movement before the DPP came into existence in 1986.

  Cautious and stable, he commands widespread respect from fellow colleagues. But several party members are concerned about the New Tide faction to which Hong belongs.

  "Well organized, the faction is known for jockeying for power in defiance of the party's interests," Tsai said.

  Hong maintains he has done nothing to date to further his political career, saying it is just not his style.

  Likewise, neither Shen nor Ker would declare their candidacy for fear that such a move would ruin their chances, as the president has yet to make known his intentions on the matter.

  Chen, due to reshuffle the Cabinet next month, is being particularly tight-lipped, observed Shen, a member of the party's Justice Alliance faction.

  He said the president's hesitancy was worrying for fellow aspirants for the post, as they fear they will not have enough time to seek support from colleagues across party lines.

  The legislature will elect the speaker and vice speaker on Feb. 1, immediately after the newly elected lawmakers take their oaths of office.
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