Shared blame

When liberal and conservative groups join forces, there should be a significant reason, such as a national emergency or a crisis that could shake the country’s foundations.

If they join forces without such a cause, it misrepresents public opinion, as expressed in elections. Independent candidates supporting Park Geun-hye have been having trouble returning to the Grand National Party because their return distorts the will of the voters.

In a similar vein, the coalition between Liberty Forward Party Chairman Lee Hoi-chang and Moon Kook-hyun of the Creative Korea Party clearly shows a lack of respect for voters. Lee and Moon agreed to form a joint negotiation bloc at the National Assembly, consisting of 18 LFP legislators and three from the CKP.

A negotiation bloc is a basic negotiating unit of the National Assembly. If a party forms a negotiation bloc, its members are entitled to head some of the 17 committees in the National Assembly. A negotiation bloc must consist of 20 legislators, and Lee of the LFP actively sought the alliance with Moon since the LFP was two seats short of becoming a bloc. Lee once expressed his one-sided love for Park Geun-hye of the Grand National Party. When it did not work out, he looked for another partner. Moon, who has been troubled by an investigation into one of his party legislators, might want to overcome the difficulty by forming a negotiation bloc.

It can simply be said that they recognized a mutual interest. However, how will they manage to resolve the conflict of interest between voters who voted for Lee’s “orthodox conservatism” and those who chose the CKP for its “creative liberalism”? Lee and Moon will be held responsible for betraying the voters’ trust for political purposes.

Although Lee and Moon should be criticized, the Grand National Party and the United Democratic Party should also take responsibility. President Lee Myung-bak and the GNP ignored Lee of the LFP from the beginning, which led to his joining hands with the liberal group. Likewise, the UDP abandoned Moon.

The GNP’s arrogance and the UDP’s incompetence created the third negotiation bloc. Once again, we realized the lack of vision and political leadership and incompetence of our major politicians. As the 17th National Assembly ends without the passage of the free trade agreement between South Korea and the United States, the 18th National Assembly begins with the unpleasant alliance between two opposite groups.