The surprise appointment of a new prime minister was largely taken as two-way strategy by President Park Geun-hye -- apparently yielding to the political parties’ call for a stronger Cabinet, but also implying that she will not completely step back from power.
The hurried and arbitrary manner of the announcement, which triggered complaints from political circles, also led to speculation that the presidential office attempted to deflect the attention away from the additional revelations concerning the Choi Soon-sil scandal.
Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesday tapped Kim Byong-joon, public administration professor at Kookmin University and former policymaker for the late liberal President Roh Moo-hyun, as the new prime minister to replace Hwang Kyo-ahn. “Kim may be seen as a ‘responsible prime minister’ who will have a reinforced range of authority and take charge of the nation’s internal affairs,” said a Blue House official.
“He will largely act independently (from the presidential office) and take an active role in further reshuffling the Cabinet.”
The fact that the president exerted power in naming the new top official indicates that Park decided to reinforce the prime ministerial authority under the current administrative system, shunning the idea of constituting a new “neutral Cabinet.”
The neutral Cabinet refers to a comprehensive government structure which is not affiliated to a specific political party and therefore allows the opposition camp greater control over state affairs.
The “responsible prime minister” system is considered an alleviated version of the neutral Cabinet as it does not necessarily involve a complete overhaul or the involvement of opposition parties.
If he makes it past parliamentary approval and takes office, Kim is anticipated to be bestowed with the right to nominate Cabinet members and motion for their dismissal.
Kim’s recommendation of former Gender Equality Vice Minister Park Seung-joo as minister of public safety and security was taken as him exercising personnel authority.
But Park will continue to remain the commander-in-chief for the nation’s external affairs such as diplomacy and national security, as stated in the Constitution, according to officials.
“I believe that the president will attend (the Korea-China-Japan trilateral summit) once the date of the occasion is confirmed,” said Kim Kyou-hyun, senior presidential secretary for foreign affairs and national security, at the parliamentary steering committee meeting.
Political parties, which had been gearing up to have a say in constituting the incoming Cabinet in one way or another, were taken aback by the president’s pre-emptive action.
Condemning the president’s decision, the three opposition parties vowed to boycott the parliamentary ratification for the prime minister nominee.
The ruling Saenuri Party, which had recommended Kim as a priority candidate for the post, also showed surprise over what seemed to be Cheong Wa Dae’s solitary decision.
Before the sudden announcement, Kim’s appointment was largely considered a plausible scenario, generally approved by both the ruling and the opposition camps.
The sudden personnel announcement kindled rumors throughout political circles that the president was trying to divert attention away from An Chong-bum, the former senior presidential secretary for policy coordination.
An, who faced prosecutorial questioning Wednesday for his alleged involvement in the Choi Soon-sil scandal, was reported as telling an acquaintance that he had only acted upon the direct orders of the president.
The alleged remarks by one of the president’s closest aides further boosted the public’s fury against the state leader‘s involvement in the unprecedented state scandal.
Cheong Wa Dae, however, dismissed all such speculation, claiming that the Cabinet reshuffle was but a crucial move to normalize state affairs.
By Bae Hyun-jung ()
koreaherald@heraldcorp.com
