13 Dec 2010

French Polynesia's vice-president speaks of territory sliding towards chaos

6:47 am on 13 December 2010

The French Polynesian vice-president, Edouard Fritch, says without a majority and without a budget, the territory is sliding towards chaos.

Mr Fritch made the comment in a weekend interview with a Tahiti blog after the assembly was ten votes short of the minimum 29 assembly members to pass the supplementary budget last week.

There is continued disagreement over the drafting of the 2011 budget which is to be passed before the end of the month.

Meanwhile, the opposition Union For Democracy, which last week called on the President Gaston Tong Sang to resign, says it will demand that the government revisit its plans on how to charge social security levies.

The group's demand hah been endorsed by Gaston Flosse of the Tahoeraa Huiraatira, who is also Mr Fritch's party.