The French Polynesian opposition Union For Democracy has lodged a motion of no confidence in the government of Gaston Tong Sang less than two weeks after his eight-month-old coalition government lost the support of most of his party's assembly members.
An assembly sitting is to be called within two days for a vote.
This comes just days before the French minister in charge of overseas territories, Christian Estrosi, is due in Papeete to continue last week's discussions in Paris with most French Polynesian party leaders on restoring political stability.
The French government has ruled out an official dissolution of the assembly by President Nicolas Sarkozy but has proposed instead to shorten the term of the current assembly in order to bring forward the election originally scheduled for 2009.
The Union of Democracy, which lost power in a no-confidence vote last December, didn't join last week's Paris discussions that centred on
possible early elections and a third change to electoral system in three years.
The French government plans to push through amendments to French Polynesia's set-up by October ahead of Mr Sarkozy's planned visit to
Tahiti in two months.
Mr Tong Sang, who is in Samoa for the launch of the South Pacific Games, says the no-confidence doesn't do the political class proud.
