The clock is ticking

President Park Geun-hye has completely lost the eligibility and authority to run and represent the country as she is now a prime suspect in the unprecedented power abuses and crimes of impairing state affairs. The moral, political, and legal reasons to impeach her are all established.

The rival parties need no longer quarrel and must immediately embark on the legal and systematic procedure to push the president out of the office in an orderly fashion.

The three opposition parties separately voted to push for impeachment. Some members of the ruling Saenuri Party filed a request to punish Park with the party’s ethics committee. Reform-minded members Nam Kyung-pil, Gyeonggi Governor, and Rep. Kim Yong-tae chose to leave the party.

Park made it clear that she won’t go down easy by refusing to comply with prosecution questioning. Instead of calling out for resignation, politicians must take legal action to push her out of office.

The three opposition parties and ruling party should proceed with impeachment procedures and at the same time install a prime minister to lead a nonpartisan government. The president already authorized the legislative branch to nominate a prime minister and therefore would have to comply. Even if she attempts to veto, the legislative bran should nevertheless name a prime minister and pressure her to keep to her promise.

The rivaling parities then should embark on the impeachment motion to uphold the Constitutional order, and not motivated by political interests.

Impeachment could buy the president more time in the office and muster support from her supporters. But since her criminal allegations are evident, it is the legislative duty to seek impeachment. The motion itself can be fatal for the president and her supporters. Impeachment is the only legal option to bring order in the political chaos while the president remains recalcitrant to take responsibility.

The political stalemate has gone on for a month because the main opposition and its former leader Moon Jae-in have been dithering in fear of losing advantage in a presidential race. The rivaling parties must put aside political math to save the country from further chaos and shame.

JoongAng Ilbo, Nov. 22, Page 30