In an unexpected move that confounded business leaders and political observers this week, President Abel Pacheco unveiled a plan apparently designed to help him reach a decision on one of the most divisive issues facing his administration: the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States (CAFTA).

Surprising onlookers at a press conference following his weekly Cabinet meeting Tuesday, Pacheco announced he plans to form a "council of notables," made up of five people of his choosing, to re-examine the agreement's ramifications for Costa Rica.

Analysts characterize the move as a delay tactic.

"If you want to kill a topic in Costa Rican politics, you name a commission to deal with it," said Luis Guillermo Solís, head of the political science program at the University of Costa Rica (UCR). "My impression is that Pacheco is very unhappy with CAFTA, and he's very uneasy about the consequences of presenting the treaty to the assembly. It would create institutional havoc at a time when the government would like to have an easy and peaceful conclusion," Solís told The Tico Times.

THE President's announcement came less than 24 hours after his meeting with the largest U.S. congressional delegation ever to visit Costa Rica , several of whose members urged Pacheco to send CAFTA to the assembly as soon as possible (see separate story).

It also came in the wake of not-so-veiled threats from the newly formed National Social Network, an organization of unions and other anti-CAFTA groups that say they will bring Costa Rica to a halt with strikes and protests if Pacheco sends CAFTA to the assembly.

While the unions accuse the government of having negotiated the agreement behind the backs of the people, politicians and business chambers have labeled the network's threats as undemocratic, with some comparing the unrest to the beginnings of the current political instability in South American countries such as Ecuador.

For months, Pacheco has maintained that he won't send CAFTA to the assembly until legislators reform the tax code to better distribute the wealth free trade might provide. This stance has enraged business leaders, who say it could prevent the pact's passage altogether -- particularly since lawmakers have been discussing tax reforms for more than three years without reaching a consensus.

Now, it seems Pacheco's doubts about CAFTA may go beyond financial equality. Asked whether, depending on the recommendations of the "council of notables," he might step back from CAFTA, the President did not discard the possibility, saying the agreement may pose problems for Costa Rica as a sovereign nation.

However, Pacheco preceded the announcement with pro-CAFTA remarks. He delivered some derisive criticism of anti-CAFTA activists, saying they have "spun incredible legends" such as an argument that the pact would allow the United States to claim Isla del Coco , Costa Rica 's legendary "Treasure Island," located 365 miles west of the Pacific port of Puntarenas.

The President then changed course, explaining his plans to consult "five Costa Ricans, the best we have." He added that he may announce their names within the week.

Asked why he allowed representatives of Costa Rica to sign CAFTA last year if he has doubts about the agreement, he said, "I trusted (the negotiators). I can't be Superman and do everything... I'm like the conductor of an orchestra."

Alberto Trejos, Pacheco's former Foreign Trade Minister, who oversaw Costa Rica 's negotiation "dream team" -- as they were dubbed by the press -- and later signed the agreement, discounted this vision of Pacheco as a detached supervisor.

"The interpretation that the President is external to CAFTA is not correct," he told The Tico Times. "He was the one who made the decision to start the negotiations; the big decisions during the negotiations; and the decision to sign the treaty."

Political analyst Solís agreed.

"He has argued that he was misled by the negotiators regarding the content of the treaty, but he's the highest political authority in the country," he said. "He's thinking, 'If (former President and 2006 presidential candidate) Oscar Arias is elected, why not have him take all the heat? Why should I pay for the broken plates?'... But if that's the logic, he should come to the forefront and recognize it."

Union leader and CAFTA opponent Edgar Morales, secretary general of the National Association of Public and Private Employees (ANEP), expressed a mixed reaction to Pacheco's plan.

"If the President's intention is to have the council lock itself into a room and take notes, he's wrong," he said, but added that if council members make an effort to create a national dialogue about CAFTA, the idea "could yield important results."

THE most difficult aspect of forming the new council may be finding the right people for the task.

Pacheco said his chosen five would be unbiased, not aligned with business or union interests, but finding such a group is easier said than done, according to Solís.

"I have no idea where he's going to find them," he said. "This is like finding a jury for the trial of a superstar. Anybody with respectable (knowledge) of CAFTA has to have an opinion on it."

According to Trejos, choosing new "notables" is superfluous.

"The country already has a council of notables," he said. "They are the 57 people that Costa Ricans elect to the Legislative Assembly."

DURING this new twist in the CAFTA saga, the firm Unimer, commissioned by the daily La Nación to interview Costa Ricans on a wide variety of topics, released data showing citizens' opinions of Pacheco's administration have taken a dive in the past year.

Of the 1,415 people Unimer interviewed throughout the country early this month, 56% said the Pacheco administration is not resolving the country's problems, up from 40% in November 2004. Only 19% qualified the government's performance as "good."

Nevertheless, opinions of Pacheco himself are more favorable than those of his government. In a popularity ranking of 16 public figures, Pacheco came in second with a 67% favorable rating, behind Citizen Action Party (PAC) legislator Epsy Campbell and ahead of ex-President Arias (1988-1992).