Colossal government revamp is needed

The exposure of text messages between President Yoon Suk-yeol and Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader and acting head of the People Power Party (PPP), in the media only deepens public distrust in the conservative administration. In the messages, President Yoon ridiculed former PPP chairman Lee Jun-seok for helping divide the party instead of fighting against opposition parties. In reaction, Lee — who is on a crusade to gather public support for him after a six-month suspension for sexual favors he allegedly received — has rekindled a battle with pro-Yoon lawmakers in the party. People are disheartened by the deepening internal schisms.

Since the launch of the administration in May, the PPP has been marred with internal battles over its new chairmanship to grab nomination rights for the legislative elections in 2024. Following early conflicts over punishing Lee for allegations against him, the PPP has been engrossed with in-house fights between its acting head and Rep. Chang Je-won, another ally of President Yoon. The public is dumbfounded by endless battles inside the party.

Not surprisingly, President Yoon’s approval rating plunged to the 30 percent range less than 100 days after the start of his administration on May 10. His first priority is fast reenergizing the economy suffering from high prices, high interest rates and declining exports.

But Rep. Kweon, the acting head of the party, was not able to end the factional battles or help the administration tackle harsh economic challenges. After making fumbles repeatedly, he apologized for having naively agreed to the Democratic Party’s scheme to deprive the prosecution of its investigative authority without considering its ramifications and for his dismissal of the recruitment of an acquaintance in the presidential office. The latest exposure of the secretive text messages only fuels people’s disappointment at Kweon. The PPP must start a colossal revamp of the embattled party.

The presidential office is no exception. A man whose name appeared in the exposed text messages is reportedly working in the presidential office. As he could be a hard-line YouTuber, the DP criticized the presidential office for turning into a “playground for far-rightists.” The presidential office kept mum about the identity of the man it hired.

If personal connections are involved in the recruitment for the presidential office, it must be stopped immediately as President Yoon championed the value of fairness more than anyone else. People attributed his plummeting approval rating to his unfair appointments above all. The office must revamp its operations.