hankyoreh

Dec. 18. (by Kim Kyung-ho

By Kim Su-heon, staff reporter

Two Saenuri Party (NFP) stalwarts blasted their party’s leadership and the Blue House’s “disregard for communication and public welfare” during its first year in power.

The Dec. 18 message from Lee Jae-oh and Chung Mong-joon, both prominent figures from outside the party’s mainstream, came just a day before the first anniversary of Park Geun-hye’s election victory.

Lee’s comments in particular are expected to cause a stir, with the lawmaker saying that “those who need to should step down.”

Lee spoke his mind at a joint meeting of the party’s supreme council and senior members at the National Assembly that morning. Reviewing the year since Park’s election, he declared, “What we’ve lost is political reform and public welfare. What’s left is nothing but political squabbles.”

Lee reserved harsh words of criticism for the administration.

“Is there a single thing you could tell them it did well, when the public asks what the Park Geun-hye administration has done over the past year?” he asked.

He was equally unsparing with the party, saying was “too focused on keeping up with issues from the outside - the NIS, the prosecutors, the Blue House - without giving any hope to the public or the country, or showing them how the party in power can offer something different.”

He went on to call for the resignations of party leaders and Cabinet members.

“At companies, at the end of the year they switch out the people who don’t perform,” he said. “The country and the party should do the same.”

“Looking back at its first year, I think those who need to should step down for the sake of the Park Geun-hye administration’s success,” he added.

Lee also called on the party chairman and leaders to “act responsibly and show a new image for the party.”

“The party owes it to the people to have a new leader come forward to run things,” he said.

The remarks were taken as calling for the resignations of party chairman Hwang Woo-yea, who is seen by many as too susceptible to pressure from the Blue House and key Park supporters in the party, and floor leader Choi Kyung-hwan, a Park camp member who has been accused of turning the party into “subcontractors for the Blue House.”

The Park wing, which currently dominates the party, raised strong objections to the remarks.

Yoo Ki-june, a supreme council member from the Park camp, responded in person to Lee, likening the year’s work to “clearing the ground to put up a building.”

“It’s a good method of observation to see what kind of building it’s going to be and how it is going to be used,” Lee cautioned.

Others said Lee was expressing what many party insiders are already thinking.

“The lawmakers themselves may not be talking about it, but there’s a widespread feeling of shame and discontentment about how impotent the ruling party has been,” said a second-term Saenuri lawmaker on condition of anonymity.

Noting that Hwang has not announced any plans to step down, the lawmaker added, “I’m not sure what grounds there are for telling him to step down, or what else there is to lead the party if he does.”

“Everybody’s pretty much waiting to see what happens in the coming year,” the lawmaker said.

Chung Mong-joon, who at seven terms is the party’s longest-serving lawmaker, delivered his own warning message at the meeting.

“We should not lose sight of the fact that Saenuri Party approval ratings have just been holding steady,” he noted.

“Since the ruling party is in control of the administration, the public is going to hold it responsible for any political distrust,” he warned.

Chung went on to note the example of Germany, where Chancellor Angela Merkel paid a personal visit to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) for marathon all-night negotiations toward a grand coalition that saw the SDP take six Cabinet positions, including vice chancellor for economic affairs.

“We may not be able to follow the German example because of the differences between the presidential and Cabinet systems, but we also need to be making an effort towards popular unity,” Chung said.

His remarks were widely seen as an indirect rebuke of Park, who many have criticized for her “uncommunicative” and divisive style.

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