The motion Tong Sang was facing was filed by a coalition of two opposition parties, the Union for Democracy, or UPLD, led by former pro-independence President Oscar Temaru, Tahoeraa Huiraatira, led by long-time President and veteran politician Gaston Flosse, and Rautahi led by Jean-Christophe Bouissou, a breakaway MP and caucus leader from Tong Sang’s To Tatou Ai’a coalition.
In the past two months, Tong Sang’s had been losing his paper-thin majority, which formerly consisted of 29 of the 57 MPs in the local legislative assembly.
After the announcement from one majority member to leave Tong Sang’s To Tatou Ai’a, Bouissou started to negotiate with the two opposition leaders and both former presidents, Flosse and Temaru.
Flosse and Temaru have since July 2007 announced their reconciliation, after some 30 years of open political confrontation, respectively on the pro-France and pro-independence lines.
The no-confidence motion, which was scheduled to be discussed in local Parliament on Thursday, cited the movers’ desire to put an end to some five years of chronic instability, which has severely impacted on the local economy, political behaviors “from the past” and the wish to form what they term a “pacified majority”…“exempt of any form of political division.”
The three-party block claims their alliance would bring together a majority of at least 31 of the 57 MPs in the legislative assembly.
When it was filed, the motion stipulated that if it gained sufficient support to pass, Temaru was to become the next president of French Polynesia, a position he has already held several times.
Flosse did not sign the motion and expressed initial reservations as to Temaru’s presidency bid, saying this was not in keeping with the power-sharing agreement signed with Temaru last year.
No choice was announced for the post of vice president, a position that could turn out to be crucial in any government led by Temaru.
The pro-independence leader has recently spent several weeks for treatment in New Zealand and is understood to be scheduled to travel back there in the coming weeks.
At the weekend, Temaru told local media he trusted Flosse.
Now that the motion is no longer relevant, Temaru, as local assembly speaker, is bound to call for an extraordinary meeting within the next 14 days to elect a new president.
In announcing his resignation at the weekend, Tong Sang said this would allow anyone MP, including himself, to bid for the top position.
But Bouissou, in reaction, said at the weekend the motion was still on the agenda and that Tong Sang’s resignation was an attempt to buy time.
Temaru was French Polynesia’s president in 2004, after the general elections, was toppled and since come back three times at the top position.
Since the 2004 general elections, the French Pacific territory has seen seven changes of governments, most of those the result of motions of no confidence being passed by paper-thin majorities.
