President-elect Park Geun-hye promised to guarantee a stable life after retirement as a priority in her meeting with representatives of seniors Wednesday.

“I believe that it is the country’s obvious responsibility to secure a stable life after retirement for seniors that have dedicated their entire life to family,” Park said in the meeting with the members of the Korea Senior Citizens Association.

“I will implement the (relevant) pledges by prioritizing them.”

Park, who will assume office on Feb. 25, has received overwhelming support from the older generation nostalgic for the robust industrial growth of the 1960s and 1970s under the rule of Park’s father and former president Park Chung-hee. Some 62.5 percent of those in their 50s and 72.3 percent of those in their 60s voted for Park in the election according to the exit polls.

The attendants, for their part, underscored that the best welfare for senior citizens was to provide them with more employment opportunities to avoid becoming a burden on their children.

Park, in turn, applauded the group’s contribution in resurrecting traditional markets nationwide, and for helping find some 250,000 jobs for seniors so far.

The association has special significance for the president-elect as it was founded with the help of her late mother, former first lady Yuk Young-soo, Park’s spokeswoman Cho Yun-sun said at a press briefing.

Park visited the association after her meeting with the business representatives earlier in the day, during which she encouraged small and medium-sized businesses and vowed to eradicate unfairness, unreasonableness and imbalance from the economy.

Park, meanwhile, is expected to announce her prime minister nominee by Jan. 20, according to the transition committee operation plan submitted by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security.

The National Assembly’s hearing on the candidate will thus be conducted until Feb. 5, according to the plan.

The designation of the prime minister, who is expected to have more authority as part of Park’s pledge to disperse presidential power, will be followed by the lineup of Cabinet members, who will also undergo hearings until around Feb. 20.

The transition committee is also in charge of presenting a new government organization plan, which will be finalized through due revision to the relevant laws by the Assembly.

As requests from citizens and various civic groups escalated, the transition committee said it plans to set up a space on the website to collect opinions and refer to them. Several civic group activists have been camped outside the Korea Banking Institute building in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, where the transition team is situated.

By Lee Joo-hee (jhl@heraldcorp.com)