President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) is facing another crisis of credibility after he unexpectedly announced the government would suspend the reform of the credit units of farmers' and fishermen's associations on Sunday.
Chen's decision has eviscerated a long-expected three-tiered risk-control mechanism, which was launched by the Finance Ministry on Aug. 20, to clean up the non-performing loans problem of the grassroots credit units.
"The setback apparently revealed his election-oriented thinking and lack of experienced advisers," said sociologist Chiu Hei-yuan (
"The president's about-face indicates the government is heading toward corruption."
Chiu, who is also a senior member of the Taipei Society, an independent and a research fellow of Academia Sinica, said that the DPP's identity as a reformer had helped the party win the 2000 presidential election, but the people in Taiwan are beginning to get frustrated with the president's repeated policy reversals.
He stressed that the DPP's continual growth and development were based on its consistent values and spirit of reform. The confidence and expectations of the people have, however, plummeted since they saw the way Chen exercised power during the past two and half years.
In October, 2000, former premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) announced that the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Plant would be suspended, without party-to-party negotiations or supplementary programs and the move caused a year-long confrontation between the ruling party and the opposition.
The opposition parties attempted to unseat the president by emphasizing his careless decision-making and finally the president succumbed to pressure and asked the Cabinet to reinstate the project.
"Only a coward will refuse reform simply for the sake of the regime," President Chen said one year after he launched a reform over the grassroots credit units.
In early November, the farmers' and fishermen's associations around the country decided to launch a demonstration to protest the government's agricultural reform plan and opposition party leaders declared their support.
After a meeting with five of the DPP's local administrators in southern Taiwan, the president asked the Cabinet to suspend all the financial reforms concerning the cooperatives last Sunday.
"Even DPP lawmakers criticized the decision saying that the president's leadership ability is questionable. The effects of the setback may stymie reform within the party, cause the DPP to lose support and, worst of all, financial reform itself will go nowhere," Chiu said.
Though sources from the Presidential Office insisted that the president's decision was made out of concern for farmers and fishermen and to create more space for further negotiation, they nevertheless admitted that Chen had been influenced by local DPP government chiefs, who told Chen that strict oversight of the grassroots credit units may alienate traditional DPP supporters in southern Taiwan.
In the 2000 presidential election, Chen's victory was dependent on over 50 percent of the votes from seven counties and cites in southern Taiwan.
Chin Heng-wei (
"Chen changes his policy simply because the party's local administrators disagreed with the reform and that gave the opposition an excuse to make an issue," Chin said.
"The farmers and fishermen still plan to hold their demonstration. It shows that the president's concession is a total failure."
Chiu Hei-yuan added that the president has tried to please everyone since he took office and his behavior has resulted in policy back-pedaling.
"His inclination to change his mind to follow public opinion shows that his administration lacks the ability to resist pressure, which seriously damages the DPP's morale and will also alienate voters without a party affiliation."
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS